My Dark Queen
by Nom Tasty
Summary: Fairy Tail banished Lucy from their guild before the S-class exam. Heartbroken and wanted by the Magic Council, she crosses paths with someone she thought was her enemy. Zeref. He trains her in the ways of dark magic, and 7 years pass. Read inside for details! Dark!LucyxZeref. Slow Romance/Adventure/Horror/Drama/Lil' bit of Humor. Character death, evil characters and warped ideas.
1. The Start of a Nightmare

**Disclaimer: If you look at me under the right light, then close your eyes and imagine the author of Fairy Tail, I'm still not Hiro Mashima, so I don't technically own anything. Oh we'll, he's awesome!**

** *:.｡****. o(≧▽≦)o .｡****.:* **

**Author's Rant: Ok, so I've been wanting to write a story like this for a while, but I always felt like I'd push myself too much. But I can't seem to write anything else because this story keeps sticking in my head, messing everything up! So please, enjoy this! R&R!**

**Summery: (AU) Fairy Tail banished Lucy from their guild before the S-class exam. Heartbroken and wanted by the Magic Council, she crosses paths with someone she thought was her enemy. Zeref. He trains her in the ways of dark magic, and 7 years pass...**

**I know it's not a brilliant summery, and may sound generic, but I'm never good with those when I write them, because I don't want to spoil things (well more like I haven't thought that far...) so please read it, I promise originality!**

**Oh yeah, check my other Fairy Tail Fanfics 'Forgotten Memories' and 'Never Meant to Be' (sad Oneshot), and even my Beelzebub one, 'Heat' (rated M so be warned)! You don't have to, just saying, you may like it...**

**~Nom Nom :3**

**PS: I apologise for any spelling mistakes or complete changes that sound stupid, but this was wrote on my iPad and it has a tendency to change words just to mess with me.**

* * *

**My Dark Queen - Part I : The Fall**

* * *

**First:**

**The Start of a Nightmare**

* * *

Looking back on it, she pinpointed the exact time where it all started, her third mission back from Edolas. It was a rather simple and easy mission, to obliterate a small dark guild called Terror Heel, who were just terrorising the villagers of Olive Town. Yet, how could it go so terribly wrong?

* * *

Lucy examined the job board intently. Her shoulder-length blonde hair cascaded elegantly down, and was held firmly in an off-centre ponytail. She wore a short blue miniskirt, and a white shirt that hugged her breasts, with a blue cross on it. She had a brown belt which held a black whip with a heart-shaped end, and had a key hoop on which held various gold and silver keys.

This would be the third mission this week. They'd just returned from Edolas two weeks ago, and partied a week straight for the return of Lisanna. At first, the entire guild was terrified for what many happen when she met Lucy. Would Natsu kick Lucy away for Lisanna? Or vice versa? Yet the two surprised everyone by becoming great friends. Lisanna joins Team Natsu while Lucy stayed in it. Then missions began, and Lucy was reminded of her dept to her landlady. She'd missed the last month's rent, and so she managed to somewhat force Team Natsu to help get the money, with Lisanna's support. Yet, like always, they got absolute minimum reward for destroying something. So she needed something bad.

'Find the missing heirloom, 92,000 Jewels' - no, too time consuming. 'Participate in magic show, 5,000 Jewels' - no, it would barely allow them any cut. 'Catch the "Phantom Phale", 5,000,000 Jewels' - wait, wasn't that something like an S-Class mission? She'd point it out to Mirajane later. Then a small flier caught her eye:

**WANTED: Team of Mages to subdue Dark Guild Terror Heel.**

**LOCATION: Olive Town and surrounding area.**

**REWARD: 10,000 Jewels + Requip Stone: Sky Empress**

Requip Stone? That confused Lucy. Normally to take out a Dark Guild, even the smallest and weakest ones, it would offer rewards of at least 100,000 Jewels, or anything equating to that. So was this stone valuable? Curious, she decided to ask Erza. Who else would know that the Requip Mage? They both were called Requip, so there might have something to do with one another.

"Hey Erza!" She called, ripping the job off the board and running to her. "Take a look at this."

Erza Scarlet. An S-Class Mage, the guilds disciplinarian. With long red hair that falls straight to her lower back, and her signature steel armour with a golden cross centring over her heart. With a sad history, she learned Requip magic at a young age, and when she joined Fairy Tail, became the youngest S-Class Mage at the age of 15. Lucy admired her greatly, and Erza was protective of Lucy, like a younger sister.

Lucy passed the flier to Erza. "What's a Requip Stone?" She asked.

"I know!" Shouted Natsu from behind Erza.

"No you wouldn't, flame brain idiot." Muttered Gray, next to him.

"Who are you calling an idiot, ice queen!"

"Flame sucker!"

"Ice licker!"

Even thought the insults were feeble, even by their standards, they began to fight. Natsu Dragneel was a fire Dragon Slayer, with pink hair that spiked up in all directions. He had a white-scaled scarf that never left his sight, and wore an open black vest with black shorts and sandals. Gray Fullbuster was a Ice Mage, with black hair that was more tame than Natsu's. Because of an unusual habit of stripping that he acquired, he normally never wore clothes. At the time, he had black and blue striped boxers, with his silver necklace and bracelet.

The two threw punches at one another, and began to escalate before they stopped. Erza hadn't done anything, not even shout at them, just stare at the flier. Other guild members were drawn to the Mage who was extremely out of character, and everyone had one single thought. What was on that paper?

"Erza, what's a Requip Stone?" Lucy repeated, breaking the uneasy silence that fell upon the guild members.

"A Requip Stone is a stone that holds a new Requip Armour information inside it. They're rare, and cannot be created without the knowledge that had been long lost. I've collected almost all of them but a few have evaded my grasp." She tapped the paper. "The Sky Empress Armour is one of them."

She turned to Natsu and Gray. "We're doing this job, and if you so much even trip, I will castrate you." She threatened, emitting an aura that was 10 times worse than usual, even causing Master Makarov to flinch. Noticing that not only their lives were endangered, but their future children's lives, they nodded obediently. Lucy giggled at that. Erza turned at the giggle, making everyone tense up. She looked at Lucy, then pulled her into a hug. "Thanks Lucy." She said softly. Even though she was quiet, the whole guild could hear what she said. Lucy on the other hand was struggling to breathe in the bear hug. Quickly letting to, she faced all of Team Natsu. "We leave the train station at 3pm, in an hour. Get ready." She didn't have to say it twice. Team Natsu all dispersed into separate directions to their own homes.

* * *

As usual, when Lucy arrived at the station with five minutes to spare, and met Erza, with her mountain of luggage. There was about thirty different suitcases, all different colours and shapes, form small red circular ones to large black rectangular ones. They were all tied together with ropes, and Erza held onto it like it was nothing. However, what was strange was that there was a space for Lucy's pink suitcase, and she even gestured for her to place it there.

"Thanks Erza." She smiled to her, and Erza smiled back. Somehow, it had brought them closer together. Lucy thought that it was funny that just a small mission could do that.

Next to arrive, with three minutes to spare, was Lisanna. Lisanna had short silver hair, like her brother and sister, and was about the same size as Lucy in all departments except her chest. She wore a green shirt and blue pants. Normally she and Lucy would arrive at the same time, but she was carrying extra luggage, a black and red case with her usual white one. It made Erza and Lucy smirk at one another with a knowing expression. And, as if on cue, Natsu appeared in the distance with no suitcase. He reached the three of them to see Lisanna looking slightly flustered, and Lucy and Erza smirking at one another.

"So, what's this?" Lucy finally asked, gesturing at Lisanna carrying the two suitcases. "Is there something you'd like to share?"

"N-Nothing!" Lisanna blurted, causing the two to snicker again. "No I mean... You see... What happened was..."

Lucy smiled. It looked like the poor girl was hyperventilating, and Natsu noticed so took over. "She helped me pack..."

"And~?" Erza drew out the sound to make Lisanna blush and Natsu slightly uncomfortable.

"And nothing. Much. Just, some... Kissing..." His voice quietened so that it was barely audible over the busy sound of the train station, but they heard it.

"I'm so sorry, Lucy!" Lisanna cried, rushing to her and bowing. "But can you please forget about this?"

"Why? It's great! You two are a perfect couple!" Lucy grinned, causing Lisanna to stop crying and look at her with bewilderment.

"But he's yours, right...?" It came out as a question, and the rest laughed at her. "What?"

"You thought we were dating?" Lucy howled. Natsu was red in the face, and even Erza was snickering. "No, we're not! Don't worry, he's yours." Lisanna beamed at that.

"It's going to leave." Gray said, as if appearing from nowhere. He was right, and the train began to close its doors. Lucy sighed inwardly. They hadn't even started, and yet they were running. Figures.

* * *

Olive Town was a quiet rural town. They passed fields of farms, which slowly turned to a forest as they got closer on the train. The train station itself was falling apart, and was a small shack on the outskirts of town. Other from them, no one entered or left the train. Natsu was incredibly pleased and was worshiping the ground, swearing that he would never leave it. Erza, however, felt troubled. Something big, something life changing was about to happen, and she feared not all of them would return...

"-za! Erza!" Lucy shouted, getting her attention. She was waving her hand in front of her face, trying to break her trance. "You ok? You've been just staring into the forest for about a minute. Gray and Natsu are fighting too, and they won't listen to me."

Stomping over to them, she whacked them both across their heads. It was harder than she normally would hit them, so they both collapsed on the spot. Erza internally cursed at herself. The day was fading, so it meant that when they woke up, it'd be too late to do the mission.

"Let's find a hotel or inn and wait until tomorrow." She sighed, and picked the two up. She dragged her luggage-mountain too, and the two girls eyed her up with different expressions: Lisanna completely in awe of her strength, while Lucy was bemused. This sort of thing happened too much for her liking, but it was always funny to watch, and see how people react to her monstrous strength.

Leading down the Main Street in the town (more like the only street in town) was Erza, with everyone giving her weird looks. Some sneered, while others just outright ignored them, making Lucy feel paranoid. What was with everyone in this town? She guessed it was something related with the Dark Guild Terror Heel.

Erza stopped outside a rather small building. It was falling apart, like the rest of the town was, but in better shape than most. It was painted a flaking red colour, with the word 'INN' barely visible in white across the front. Erza left everything outside and rented a room of an old woman, and proceeded to take everything up it. To Lisanna's and Lucy's surprise, when they finally reached the single room, everything, including the boys, were safely packed in the room while Erza drank a cup of tea.

"I never get used to how you do that." Lucy admired, earning a grin from Erza. "But why one room?" Normally Erza was strict on the 'No boys and girls in the same room' policy, but this time she smiled evilly.

"Well, I just wanted to see some progression between Lisanna and Natsu." She smirked. It was really because since she had to pay, because she was getting the reward, so lots of her money didn't go to waste before the imminent destruction that Natsu and Gray would cause.

Lisanna blushed a deep scarlet. "Don't forget Gray and Lucy!" She blurted out, passing the buck.

It was Lucy's turn to blush. "I-It's not like that..." She mumbled. Girl talk was now in complete flow.

The topics varied. Lisanna half convinced them that nothing's happened between her and Natsu, Lucy denied anything about liking Gray, and Erza blushed at any mention of Jellal. Then they talked about other relationships like Levy and Gajeel, Mirajane and Freed, and Laxis and Cana (which surprised everyone). Then it turned to music, with Erza liking pop, Lisanna liking classical, and Lucy (somewhat shocking the other two) liking sad songs from any genre. They were halfway debating about whether to play truth or dare when the boys woke up.

"You two have bonded, surprisingly." Natsu stated, gesturing at Lucy and Lisanna. "I thought you'd be at each others throats."

"That'd be stupid! Lisanna's a lovely girl!" Lucy argued.

"Yeah, so is Lucy! Even her Edolas version cared for me, and besides." She smiled at Lucy. "We'd only clash if we both liked you." She said, making Lucy snort with laughter. For being a (former) heiress, she acted very unladylike.

"Hey!" Natsu complained. "I'm quite desirable!"

"Yeah, but she desires Gray." Erza giggled, making her turn red. This comment and action didn't get missed.

"Oh, so you want a piece of this?" Gray said, draping his arm around her shoulders and wiggling his eyebrows at her.

"Get off her, stripper!" Natsu yelled.

"Shut up, fire head, why do you care?" Gray countered.

"Because it's like you're making a move on my sister!"

Silence followed that remark. Lisanna was so pleased with the answer, but the rest were surprised. They knew they were close, but protective like an older brother? That was something. A tear escaped Lucy's eye.

"D-Did I say something wrong?" Natsu panicked. Lucy just shook her head, ran towards him and hugged him. "W-Wha...?"

"That's the nicest thing you've said to me..." She smiled. "If you were really my brother, I'd be really happy..." He smiled then hugged her. The other three felt like they were spying on a very private moment. Everyone at Fairy Tail was special to them, but these four had a bond that transcended that. They were family, even more so than the rest. Lisanna didn't feel left out, only pleased. She was glad her Dragon Slayer got a real family, more than just the guild.

A cough interrupted them. They all turned to see the old woman that owned the inn, with a tray of food. "It's not much, but please enjoy!" She said in a small voice, before placing the tray inside and shutting the door.

If Erza hadn't of been there, Gray and Natsu would've devoured it all. Thankfully she was, and they all got even portions. All five of them got a tray of lettuce, meat, and some sauce poured over it.

"What sauce is this?" Lucy asked, and Natsu tasted it.

"Vinegar, why?" He asked her as she sighed, pushing the plate away.

"I'm allergic to pure vinegar." She smiled. Natsu grinned and took her share.

"Hey, share!" Erza ordered him, then turned to Lucy. "Sorry, if I knew than-"

"Hey, no worries!" She smiled waving it away, and she watched them eat.

After they ate, they played games like ping pong (Erza had brought the table, paddles and balls in her luggage), chess (curtsy of Lisanna), charades (Natsu's idea), they talked, and then they went to bed. They all were extremely tired, and needed to get up early and strong the next day to fight Terror Heel.

* * *

Lucy couldn't sleep. She wasn't tired. Normally, they barely slept, and Lucy was always the first one asleep and the last one up. But the rest of them were unusually sleepy, and her body was still wired for a couple more hours. Sighing, she decided a walk might tire her out, and clear her head. So she stood up and got herself changed. Somehow, her clothes had scattered everywhere, like she was turning into Gray or something, and that could never happen. So once she had located all her clothes, she looked for her belt, and froze when she had found it. It was lying over the naked Gray's crotch, the only hiding him from her view. Yeah, she was sure nothing bad could happen, so she left her whip and keys in the room.

Before she left, she glanced over towards Natsu and Lisanna. Sometime through the night, they had crawled together and were now lying comfortably in Lisanna's futon. They were cute together, and Lucy gave them nothing but support for their relationship. She couldn't wait to see what their kids would look like! Now all she needed to do was work with Levy and Gajeel... She mentally slapped herself. Now she was acting like Mirajane, with the insistent coupling of people.

Quietly, she left the inn without making a sound. Sneaking was something she perfected in her mansion, because her father had a constant paranoia of her running away and never returning (it may be justified), so he constantly put security guards around her room and the grounds at all times. He should've gotten his money back, because she was never caught once.

Humming a nonsensical tune, she thought about Happy. The poor blue feline was sick, and hadn't been to the guild for a week. Charlie and Wendy were looking after him, and he was almost 100%. It would be only a matter of days until she would hear his famous "liiiiikes" with his tongue roll. Even though it was annoying, it was quiet without it.

She walked past the train station and into the forest. The moon was out, a full moon in all its glory, and it illuminated the forest to make it picturesque. Shimmering water droplets on the leaves, rays of lights moving due to the waving leaves, flowers glowing... It made her sigh in delight. If only she had a camera.

SNAP!

The twig snapping was like she got shoved into reality. The illusionary picturesque forest was replaced with a sinister and dark forest, with creatures lurking in the shadows. The rustling of the leaves now sounded like an ominous growl, and the glowing flowers more like prying eyes. This was not a safe place for her to be...

SNAP!

That time it was closer, and her hands flew to her keys. She'd summon Loke, and maybe Gemini to look like Erza, to intimidate them... She gasped in horror. She left them back at the inn. Hurriedly, she almost ran towards the town... But she doubted herself. Was she going in the right direction? She did walk in a straight line, but she wasn't positive. For all she knew, she was just getting herself lost.

A deep laughter made her pace quicken. Now she knew it wasn't just her imagination, but she was being followed. The laughter was too close for her liking, she guessed less than 10 meters away. And there was footsteps, many of them. Why of all days did she have to forget her keys today? She regretted choosing to be solely a Celestial Mage for the first time in her life. Who cared anyway? She was probably going to die. It was the Terror Heel, knowing her luck, and she probably was living the last moments of her life.

She saw the edge of the forest and hope began to bloom. If she made it, she could maybe survive this - a very small maybe, but still not a no. So she sped up. She was almost there... Just a couple more steps...

Someone grabbed her arm. "Where do you think you're going, princess?" A disgusting voice asked. She was pulled around to see a fat man with an ugly smirk on his face. "Ooh, you're even prettier from the front." He said, creepily licking his lips. "You'll fetch a great price... Of even may become my own..."

"Let go!" She shouted hitting him. He was the leader of Terror Heel, and the rest of his guild surrounded her. They all looked like perverts, which sent shivers down her spine. She managed to throw a punch at his face, but he caught it.

"A Fairy Tail wizard." His voice turned sour. "You were probably sent to get us, weren't you?" He sneered at her. "Well, you can't be sold like that. Lets make you an example. Troy! Demeka!" He shouted to two people, a man and a woman. "Kill her."

Tears stained her cheeks. She was going to die, cause pain for her friends and her guild. She didn't want Natsu, Erza and Gray hellbent in revenge. No, she deserved to live for their sake. She didn't want to die. Levy would cry, never being able to see the end of her novel. Lisanna and Natsu would probably break up, with Natsu on a revenge mission. Erza wouldn't be able to finally be with Jellal. She would never see Gray strip again, even if that sounded disturbing. Juvia, Wendy, Mirajane, Cana, Laxis, Gajeel, Elfman... Happy. They all would suffer, and she didn't want that. She'd do anything to survive.

**Anything, you say?**

Lucy snapped out of the daze. There was a voice, it came from somewhere. It was a man's, and she felt like she should know who it belonged to.

**Are you willing to survive at any cost?**

The voice... It was in her head! She could hear it inside, like a thought that she didn't own. She felt violated, but knew her answer.

_Yes._

**Very well. I will borrow you some of my power, but be warned. There is a price. All you need to do is release your magic...**

With that the thought-voice left her, and she felt something appear inside her. It was evil, dark, forbidden. It was something that humans shouldn't hold, yet they could. She wasn't able to think about what magic it was, and she didn't have the time. All she knew was that there would be dire consequences.

"I'm sorry..." She whispered, causing the guild to look at her funny. They thought it was funny that she was apologising, not them. But they didn't have time to think that much about it. She released it from inside of her.

Magic seeped out of Lucy. It was like an invisible fog, slowly spreading in a perfect sphere around her. A couple of the guild members noticed it, but they were silenced by their leader, who couldn't. When it reached the fullest extent, which was about 50 meters, it stopped. Then, everything within the sphere died. It was like the life was just sucked away, every living thing collapsing and... Just dying. The trees inside the sphere sagged, the train station fell apart, even the grass withered.

The entire guild collapsed, instantly dead. Animals did the same, and... She gasped, turning around. A single house was caught within the sphere, and she felt the lives inside it slip away. Collapsing to the ground from fear, guilt and exhaustion, she cried...

* * *

Alerts were going off in the Magic Council Headquarters. The Commander in Chief studied the warnings and gasped. He ran to alert he Magic Council himself. Weaving through white corridors, he raced to the big wooden doors, barging past a guard who could react quick enough to stop him.

Inside the meeting, ten people stopped whatever they were doing to glare at the rude intruder. The guard tried to escort him away, but a member held up their hand as a motion to stop. "If it was so important for him to barge in during a meeting, lets hear it. However." His tone changed to a deep menacing tone. "If we deem it unimportant, you will suffer the consequences. Speak!" He commanded.

"We've got a 'Level 0' breach." He announced, in a weak voice.

After a moments silence, someone sighed annoyed. "The scale goes from 'Level 10' to 'Level 1'. A 'Level 0' doesn't exist." It was a woman's voice.

"Throw him out!" Another yelled.

"Wait!" The man who spoke first said, as he guard motioned to do so. He was the Council leader. "Are you sure the reading is right?" He asked in an extremely worried tone.

"I'm sure." He gave him the paper he held in his hand. It read:

**Lost Magic Detector**

**Level 0 Breach**

**Code Name: Black Arts**

The council member gasped. "Assemble the Rune Knights commanders and send them to this location through the Teleportation Device!"

"Wh-Which ones?" The man asked quietly.

"All of them."

* * *

Erza, Gray, Natsu and Lisanna awoke to the sound of marching. There were gasps, screams and orders to get back. Erza stood up straight, while the rest tried to fall back asleep, and peaked out the window, Requipping her usual armour.

"Hey, everyone, get up now. We've got problems."

They all, albeit rather reluctantly and slowly, made their way to the window to see what Erza was looking at. What they could see was the townsfolk crowding a wall or Rune Knights who stood near a grey line that ran across the street. Inside the circle, everything had died. Grass, plants, there were even some bodies lining the edge.

"What's happened?" Natsu breathed.

"I don't know, but it doesn't look good." Erza turned to them. "We're leaving now. Gray, clothes. Lucy, up!" She shouted, but the figure didn't move. Lucy was a light sleeper, so the fact that she didn't even twitch made Erza approach her. "Lucy?" She asked, grabbing her shoulder. But what she grabbed wasn't her shoulder, but just a cushion. Lucy was missing.

"Do you think..." Lisanna let the question hover in the air. They didn't want to answer.

"Let's go." Erza whispered, leaving the inn. The walked to the townsfolk, who parted due to the aura she was emitting, and approached the Rune Knights. "Move." She snarled, making them jump and part. The rest of the group followed wordlessly. When they reached the line, she stopped the group, plucking a flower and tossing it into the circle. When nothing happened to it, she stepped over the boundary.

The Rune Knights were shocked to see Fairy Tail pass the 'Death Line' as they dubbed it, but it was Fairy Tail, so they also expected it.

In the direct centre was a girl with blonde hair. She had her head between her knees and sobbed loudly into them. It was Lucy.

"Lucy..." Erza breathed. Lucy's head shot up and she be gain to crawl away.

"No, no, no!" She shouted. "You c-c-cant come near me!"

"Erza, move." A voice from behind called. They turned to see Master Makarov standing with some Rune Knight commanders. He had a grim expression, and looked over to Lucy sadly.

"Ma-Master." Lucy breathed. "H-H-How are y-you here?"

"The Magic Council informed me that there was a... Breech here, and wanted me to come assist." He sighed. "But to think that it was one of my children..."

"Master, what do you mean?" Natsu asked, feeling something bad was going to happen.

"You casted Dark Magic, Lucy. You killed people, innocent people." He looked like he was about to cry. "They want to arrest you and..." He choked up.

"And what, old man!" Natsu growled.

"Execute you. This was magic that Zeref used, and they don't want to take any chances." He waved his hand, and a pain shot up Lucy's arm. When it stopped, she looked down and saw that the Fairy Tail guild mark was gone, just leaving behind sensitive red skin.

Her heart fell. She was nothing to them now. She wanted to spare them pain, but they just inflicted it onto her now. Because she was a lost cause, she was disowned. She felt betrayed. She felt angry. She felt like she didn't care about anything anymore.

**That's the spirit!**

The voice from last night, the one that saved her, had returned. In her time of need, it hadn't abandoned her, and she felt desperate.

_I'll do anything! She thought. Just take me away from these backstabbers._

**With pleasure.**

She swore that she heard a smile in the voice, and she felt better. He was someone who wanted to help her. If only she knew who he was...

As if on cue, a black mist appeared from a black magic circle before them, and a man appeared. He had black hair, darker than Gray's, and black eyes. He wore an old red robes like he was from decades ago, and he smiled at her. "Hello."

It was him! The voice! He actually came to save her. She felt like she had some small hope. He was there, to save her in her darkest hour, where even her nakama from Fairy Tail won't.

"Who are you?" A Rune Knight commanded. He was wary of the newcomer, considering he just appeared from black mist, usually the sign of evil. And because Lucy was viewed as evil, he may be backup. He was right.

He gave a sly smirk. "I'm her knight in shining armour. But my name, you can call me Zeref." Just the use of his name made everyone take a couple steps back in horror. "Wow, it looks like it still has power. Well, we'll be going now." He offered Lucy his hand.

"Lucy, don't!" Makarov hissed at her. "If you take that hand, your fate is sealed. Fairy Tail won't be able to anything for you." He was desperate. If she left, the slim chance that they had to help her - which dramatically improved when Zeref appeared - would evaporate entirely.

Lucy was completely pissed. Not only did he just disown her from Fairy Tail, but he now wanted her to ignore the only person who wanted to help her. Now, she didn't want to cry. She wanted revenge. On Fairy Tail, even Erza, Natsu, Gray and the rest, albeit they weren't here, but they would follow Master Makarov to the death. And now they looked at her, with eyes begging her to listen to him. She wanted to destroy these people. It was like her hate was amplified.

She opened her mouth and smiled sweetly to them all. "I believe that you lost all rights to tell me what to do when you kicked me out of Fairy Tail." She said, bitterness flooding into her voice and tainting her words. Makarov's eyes widened at what she said, and opened his mouth to say something. But it was too late. She grabbed Zeref's hand and they both disappeared in the black mist he appeared in.

* * *

**Wow, that went on really long... I think it's the longest chapter I've ever wrote... So I command you to have enjoyed it! It will be updated as I feel, but hopefully at least once every week, two at the very max. So please review and let me know if it's any good! R&R (don't know what it means, but when it's wrote, people review, so...)**

**(((o(*ﾟ▽ﾟ*****)o)))**

**I'M SO GIDDY!**

**~Nom Nom :3**


	2. Dark Arts

**Disclaimer: If you look at me under the right light, then close your eyes and imagine the author of Fairy Tail, I'm still not Hiro Mashima, so I don't technically own anything. Oh we'll, he's awesome!**

** *:.｡****. o(≧▽≦)o .｡****.:* **

**OMG OMG OMG! People like my story. Wah! I'M SO HAPPY THAT I MIGHT EXPLODE! It wasn't even a single day, and already 12 reviews 17 favourites and 17 follows... Thank you so much!**

***･゜ﾟ･*****:.｡****..｡****.:*･****'(*ﾟ▽ﾟ*****)'･*****:.｡****. .｡****.:*･゜ﾟ･*******

**Anyway... I am so so so so so so happy! Whenever I get a review, a follow or a favourite, I want to dance. Whenever the number goes up by even just one digit I just want to cry with happiness (yeah I'm sad, but who cares! At least I'm enjoying myself (^ω^)!)...**

**Btw, as you can see I just found a bank of smilies, and I'm so hyper that I just can't stop using them! (((o(*ﾟ▽ﾟ*****)o))) - Favourite by far!**

**Oh yeah, new chapter and all that chapterness... Hope it stays good! R&R (still got no clue on what it means...). Zeref may seem a little OOC, but this is what I always thought he should be. Review Please!**

**~Nom Nom :3**

**PS: Please check my other Fairy Tail Fanfics 'Forgotten Memories' and 'Never Meant to Be' (sad Oneshot), and even my Beelzebub one, 'Heat' (rated M so be warned)! You don't have to, just saying, you may like it...**

* * *

**Second:**

**Dark Arts**

* * *

The world fell away around Zeref and Lucy. They were consumed by a black mist, and it clouded them from sight. Everything was black, everything quiet apart from the breathing from the pair. Then, as quick as it formed, the black mist left. The world reformed around them, with trees, mountains and a stream shimmering into existence.

They were at a camp. There was a animal skin tent with a single bed inside, with the entrance facing a roaring flame. There were fallen logs at acted like benches, and pots and pans scattered about. There were cloaks, all similar to the one he was wearing, scattered around the came. It made Lucy think of Gray, of his stripping habit... Then the belt she left to cover him... Then the incident of her killing the people...

"Sit." He gestured to her, pointing at the log opposite him. She did so warily, now coming to terms with her actions. She was angry, hurt, betrayed, but her actions were immature. She took the help of Zeref - the Zeref - and left her guild behind. Even though they disowned her, she shouldn't of took his hand. He was Zeref, the worlds most evil wizard to come into existence! She joined him! She needed to return...

"Z-Zeref-dono..." She started quietly, trying her best to be polite and honourable to him. He could probably end her life with just a wave of his hand, so being polite wouldn't be bad. Unfortunately, it backfired, and he looked at her slightly annoyed and somewhat amused.

"Zeref is fine." He said with a smile. This girl was amusing. First she was hotheaded and completely cut herself away from her ex-guild, but now she was all shy and polite, and very much afraid. He needed that to disappear if 'it' would work.

"W-Well Zeref...-kun..." She tried her hardest, but she needed to attach something to his name. She was always taut by her heiress background to be polite, and that was a habit she could never shake. "Can y-you return me?" She was trying her best to be casual, but it came out ad a plea to him.

He snickered inwardly. She was so amusing. He was thankful that the one that actually was compatible with him was someone so interesting. Feinting innocence, he raised an eyebrow. "Return you?" He asked, trying not to smirk. "Where to?" He knew exactly where to, but he just wanted to mess with her.

"To F-Fairy T-T-Tail." She stuttered. Yeah, she wanted back, but he needed to implement his plan. She was the first compatible person in decades, so he needed to do this just right.

"Sorry, I can't. My magic's ran dry." That was a total lie. Even though he'd casted lots of spells on the past few hours, he still had enough power to transport every member of Fairy Tail here individually, and then summon a demon population that would rival Mangolia. Yet, he needed to make it so she accepted it, not force it upon her, of else all would be lost.

"How long?" She asked, her mind racing. Ideas flooded it, one looking both very tempting but drastic, so she filed it under 'desperate measures'. "How long until you can transport us there and, if needed, back here?" Her voice was now strong, her stuttering and quietness leaving it.

How long? This was the delicate bit. If it was too long, she'd suspect him lying, and if it wasn't long enough, she'd not suggest it herself, just hold out and wait that long. "Two weeks, give or take a few days." He decided. He hoped that it was alright...

Two weeks... What kind of magic did that cost? To need to rest for that long before they could use it, it must be very taxing... The idea in the 'desperate measures' folder began to look very appetising, but she couldn't do that... Could she? It wasn't something anyone should do, yet people still did it. And if she waited two weeks, it might be too long.

"Hey Zeref-kun." She asked, making Zeref tense. This was it, she was going to either ask or point something out, a hole in his plan. What gave him away? Was it the telepathy connection? The power he shared with her? Or was it-

"How long did it take for you to learn it?"

The question surprised him. Things were progressing, so he thought about it. If he really really pushed, it would take about a week, at the very least. "About 10 days, why?" He was getting anxious now. What was she going to ask. Will she ask it?

"Can... Can you teach me it?" She said in a quiet voice. She wanted to learn it, because it'd be useful in the future. People were against her, and she couldn't always rely on Zeref to come save her... Wait, why was she thinking that? This was Zeref! He was evil! He used Dark Arts, forbidden magics that she should just avoid... But she couldn't. She had used that type of magic too... And even though it was painful to admit it, he was the only one that helped her, the only one she could remotely trust.

He nodded with a straight face, while inside he was cheering. The plan had worked! When he first felt yet another plea of help, he indulged it, l,e he normally did, expecting the power, once released, would destroy her, like it did to so many others before her. But, this time, the power worked. She casted the Dark Arts without destroying herself, and he was thrilled. He finally found her! Yet, he couldn't be too hasty. He needed to make sure that bonds were broken, and so she asked him to save her. So he weaved his magic across her guild, Fairy Tail. He made it so that the Master would remove her mark without being able to explain himself, that her friends wouldn't be able to move, and so that in her time of need she'd call to him and he'd answer. There were times where he thought that she wouldn't accept him, like the few seconds before she took his hand, but she did. And now, she asked him to learn the Dark Arts. That was the only condition on learning it, knowing what it was and accepting it completely, or else it would consume and destroy them.

"Are you sure?" He asked, trying to conceal his happiness. "This is dark magic, and it will corrupt your magic. You probably won't be able to summon Celestial Spirits as they are anymore..."

She was hesitant. He mind was working overtime. Not be able to summon her Spirits anymore? Loke, Aquarius, even Taurus... They wouldn't be able to see each other again? But, they were her friends! She couldn't leave them. She was about to voice out a rejection, but something stopped her in her tracks. So was Fairy Tail, yet they betrayed her. They were friends, but they abandoned her.

"As they are?" She asked curiously, noticing the phrasing of the words. He appeared to be hesitant, almost not wanting to share the information, but sighed in defeat.

"It corrupts your magic. It taints it in darkness, but doesn't destroy it. Your Celestial Spirits would be tainted too, making them more powerful, but it will change them, but only with their permission. It will change you." He looked at her. "Are you alright with that?"

No, she wasn't. Her spirits would all follow her, and it would change them. Them might not like it, but they had a choice. But she needed to be strong, to be able to handle herself without her spirits, so what happened would never happen again.

"Yes." She said, and he smiled. It made her breath catch in her throat and heat rise to her cheeks. The smile was so sincere, so pure, and it made her heart beat faster. She turned her head away from him and his her face. She felt that her decision was right for her, and Zeref was not all people thought he was...

* * *

The two of them disappeared in a black mist. Makarov's face fell, his heart breaking. Lucy... She just took his hand, Zeref's hand, in front of him. Why? Was it to hurt him? He didn't even get a chance to explain his actions. She must think that Fairy Tail abandoned her, and the only person willing to help was Zeref, so naturally she accepted it. Yet the Rune Knights all saw it. Zeref, the evil Mage thought to be in a deep slumber, save someone with the exact same magic as his. What they would see was a comrade helping a comrade. Lucy, even though she was innocent, had now just sealed her fate in guilty.

"Master..." Erza whispered finally. They went back to the inn where Team Natsu was staying in silence. They didn't talk once, just dwelled in their own thoughts. "Master." She repeated, louder and firmer this time.

"Yes?" He asked, his throat sore. He wanted to cry, he wanted to deny what he just saw, but he couldn't. His child Lucy, with the world's enemy Zeref... Soon she will become the world's enemy, if she wasn't already.

"Why... Why did you..." She struggled to find her voice, tears falling from her right eye. She felt like it was her fault. They all did in a way, with Gray and his stripping habit making Lucy leave her keys, Natsu because he didn't notice his 'sister' was gone, Lisanna for feeling like she pushed Lucy out, and Master for removing her mark. But herself, it was her fault. She was the one who so desperately wanted to do the mission to get the Requip Stone. It was she who knocked out Gray and Natsu, making them stay the night, and it was her who didn't check on her when she woke up. The others may think it was their fault, but she knew it was her fault.

She cleared her throat and started again. "Master, why did you remove the Fairy Tail mark?" It was a question on everyone's mind. It appeared to be the thing that pushed Lucy off the edge, making her completely hate them. They didn't help, because they trusted in their Master to fix the mess, but he didn't. And now, Lucy was gone.

"I removed it because of her trial." He stated. This was hard for him, because the only plan that he had was this, and it had completely fell apart. And her eyes, the betrayed look she gave them still haunted him. "I removed it because of the fact she killed someone."

"That was an accident!" Natsu angrily interrupted. He was fuming, the anger he was building up towards the Master finally erupting. "Lucy would never kill anyone, no matter what!"

The firm belief Natsu had for Lucy was admirable, but useless. He knew of thing they didn't. Her past, pieces that she never wished to be heard by the guild, but they needed to hear. They needed to know that even though she was Lucy, their nakama, the loving Celestial Mage, she was possible of doing this.

"When Lucy was 16, she was attacked." Makarov began. "It was by her bodyguard at the time, someone who was infatuated with her. She was alone with him because she trusted him, but that was wrongly placed trust." He sighed, remembering the tears Lucy was crying when she told him this. "It was late one night when she was bathing, and he made his move. He entered the bathroom and forced himself upon her with a knife. She refused, and he got angry and waved the knife about, and it caught her arm. She retaliated and killed him, with his own knife."

Silence followed these words. He had left out a crucial point, but hoped that they didn't need to know, only if they didn't say-

"Well, it was self defence, so it was ok." Gray said quietly, earning him an approving nod from Natsu, who was sitting back by the window, with Lisanna's head on his lap.

"It would've been, but it wasn't. You see, self defence would be a stab or a slash. What she did to him was torture. There was broken bones, missing fingers and toes that were scattered around the room, she even removed one of his eyeballs and decapitated him..." He shuddered. "All while he was still alive."

They all stared at him, horrified. They felt sick, even the unmoveable Erza looked slightly sick. This was a side to Lucy that they never knew existed. The loveable, blonde, airhead woman who abused her sex appeal, torturing someone to death. Yet that didn't explain everything. Rather, it didn't explain anything. It just gave more questions.

"So you removed her guild mark on a might?" Erza hissed, barely controlling her rage. Natsu was grinding his teeth while Gray was shaking, even Lisanna was glaring a hole in the wall. They all knew that past mistakes were bad, but to never use them as 'might' or 'could be'. Thankfully, Makarov shook his head.

"No, the reason was the fact that she had killed people then and there, even if it wasn't intentional. If she still had our mark, the Magic Council would've used it to blame the guild, and Lucy would've hated herself for that." He was telling the truth. The Magic Council would do anything to blame something on Fairy Tail, anything they could. This would just be serving it to them on a golden platter.

Erza sensed that he wasn't saying something. She wouldn't normally care, but her bad mood made it so she couldn't let it slide. "And?" She demanded, earning a look from Master, which she ignored.

"And the fact that they decided on her execution. That would've been reversible, if a well standing guild supported them. It would've just changed to imprisonment."

"What's with the past tense?" Lisanna said abruptly. Erza, Natsu and Gray didn't pick up on it, but now that they thought about it, I was all 'would've' and not 'will'.

"Well, that's what should've happened, and would've before Zeref came." Just saying the name left a bad taste in his mouth. "Him coming to her and helping her escape is practically rubbing it in the Council's face, and giving them a connection to use. However, if she refused the hand, we would've been able to, albeit with a lot of fighting, got her free of all charges."

The air fell heavy. Everyone was thinking about the look she gave them. Hurt and looking for help, but when none came, it was betrayal. Those eyes made them shudder. The fact that they were so close to helping her and saving her, only to loose her utterly was gut wrenching. Now Zeref had his claws in her, for god knows what, and it was likely that she wouldn't ever return, and if she did, she wouldn't be the Lucy they knew...

* * *

After their talk, training began. It was mid-morning, and Zeref led either way around the island. It was a strange island, because it was shaped like a giant tree, with thick tree trunks wrapping around one another, supporting a second island up above. One side of the island had rocks that was jutting out, and strange bright yellow plants among the usual green plants.

Zeref led them to a cliff next to he ocean, and Lucy could see that there were no islands on the calm blue sea. It was like they were alone in the middle nowhere, with nowhere to go.

Zeref pointed to a small boulder that was on the very edge of the cliff, which looked extremely unsafe to Lucy. "Sit on that with your legs crossed."

Lucy was somewhat cynical of him. He said not to question his methods, but she was completely bemused by him. Strangely, she didn't feel afraid to be around him. He wasn't bad, she thought that people had just misjudged him. Sighing reluctantly, she did what he said. Sitting on the edge terrified Lucy, but she did so. The boulder wasn't stable, and the slightest movement made it rock.

"Ok, now slowly move." Zeref said, making Lucy stare at him. He had floated in front of her, above the waves, and smiled at her. He looked like he was enjoying himself.

"What? Are you crazy?" She shouted, making him smile. He was enjoying this, her reactions were fresh and new, different from the 'Yes Zeref-sama' from loyalists, or the screaming from scared people. She just said what was on her mind, even to him and she didn't care, and he liked it.

"This is an important lesson. Doing this will help you to stop fearing death."

"Well anyone would fear death if you push them off a cliff..." She grumbled at him, but still did as he said. It was slowly and slightly awkward at first, but she gradually improved up to the point here it was moving vigorously. "Hey, this is actually amusing!"

"Stop." He commanded, and she did so instantly, looking relieved but slightly sad. "Now jump off."

She couldn't help but laugh at his ridiculous just told her to jump off the cliff, like it was her training. She thought he was messing with her, until she saw his face. "Oh you're serious..."

"Don't worry, this is part of your training. Dark Arts is something humans are only capable of in threat of death, and learning it defies all laws of magic. That's why it's forbidden, because it's supposed to be impossible..."

She nodded, learning one thing from that. To master Dark Arts, she'd have to go through things like this a lot... She mentally shook herself. She didn't want to master Dark Arts! It was evil! She only wanted to go home. Yet, the thought of her being powerful, even more so than Erza, Gray, Natsu and even Master made her feel all tingly inside. It sounded quite fun, actually...

She jumped. It shocked Zeref, because he expected her to hesitate more, even downright refuse. But, yet again, she surprised him. She really was amusing to him, and he looked forward to see how powerful she would get...

As she fell, she felt the black thing inside her. The forbidden, horrid magic didn't feel unnatural this time. It felt perfectly natural, almost like this is what she had waited her entire life to feel this power. It was like a rush on drugs (something she knew well from her heiress days), but ten times better without any drawbacks. She wanted - no, she needed to use this power. So she did.

The release of this power was different that the last time. This time, she felt like she could control it, make it only her this time. She didn't care that last time she used the power people died. She just felt exhilarated. She forced it to combine with her own magic, and she felt an extreme magic boost. Yet, the fall was over, and the water reached out for her...

But it didn't get her. A soft but strong arm slowly wrapped around her waist and she stopped falling. It wasn't a gentle stop, but a vigorous, whiplash-gaining stop. But it was better than getting soaked and shredded by the ocean and cliff, so she viewed it as a bonus. Another bonus was the fact that Zeref held her tightly against him as he pulled her in back to the cliff with his flying magic.

When they reached the ground again, they collapsed onto it, both tired for two different reasons. Lucy from the fusion of the darkness with her magic, and Zeref from the unusually taxing flight. He could sense Lucy was different, but he couldn't believe it.

"What did... You do?" He asked her in between panting.

"What do you mean?"

He breathed more slowly, regaining his breath. "What you just did with your magic. You fused it with the Dark Arts!"

She looked confused. "Isn't that what you wanted me to do?" She asked racking her memory. He didn't say it, but she just assumed that it was what she needed to do.

"No, it wasn't." He looked at her with both amazement and disappointment. "What you did would take years for even an experienced wizard to do. Doing it straight out like that normally killed the person."

"Did you do it like that?"

The question confused him. Why did she want to know that? He didn't need to answer, but she wanted to know, and he felt pressured by her big brown eyes to tell her. "Yes." He reluctantly admitted. He was probably the only other Mage in history who survived it by doing that. She was about to become as powerful as him. She had already began, but he'd keep that a secret, for now.

Standing up, he dusted himself off. "Now, seeing as you've done that, it looks like we'll be able to see this Fairy Tail of yours soon."

She smiled. "Yeah. Let's do this! I feel so powerful!" She felt amazing still. Her body itself felt more powerful, her muscles stronger, her eyes sharper. It was like she had just gotten a new body.

"But be warned." He cautioned her. She was different from when he first found her already. She was more confident, more powerful... More beautiful... "You haven't mastered it yet. It takes years to do so without it destroying you. You seem to have the same type of learning rate as I did, but it still took me about six years. Do you want to fully control it, or just let it destroy you?"

"Yes, teach me." She didn't even hesitate. She knew the answer. She wanted power, she wanted to be stronger to destroy Fairy Tail. It surprised her how much she changed within a few hours. The fluffy and airhead Lucy was gone, and she was more powerful. And, for some reason, she wanted to stay with Zeref for a little longer.

"Then lets go visit a guild!"

* * *

The train ride back to the guild was in complete silence. Gray hadn't stripped, he just stared out the window. Erza did the same, her eyes glazed over. Natsu was sick on the floor, as usual, but he didn't make a sound this time. Lisanna just stared at him. And Makarov... He just attempted to sleep, with no avail. He was woken up through the night to go to the 'Breech', so he barely got any sleep.

Lucy. All their thoughts lingered on the blonde girl. Her innocence, her determination for jobs, her smiles. How she treated her Celestial Spirits like friends rather than objects. How she always prepared their favourite foods for whenever they came over. How she always had extra clothes for Gray. How she was the only girl who had girl talk with Erza. How she cleaned Natsu's house. Everything she did was from love. Yet, they couldn't save her.

Happy. Natsu dreaded talking to him when they returned. How would he explain it to his best friend? He loved Lucy. Not only him, but the entire guild did. How would they explain it to the rest of the guild? They all loved Lucy. Even though she just joined about a year ago, she was already a figurehead in the guild, even owning her own figurine. Master would break the news, but people will get very upset...

The train slowed to a stop, and the Fairy Tail members disembarked. Rune Knights would be at their guild later, after checking her apartment, to see if she came back, but Makarov hoped she wouldn't. She wouldn't be able to escape otherwise.

The crowds parted and let the group through. All of the members present (excluding Lisanna) were emitting a killing aura. They all were angry at themselves, but also slightly towards their Master, who was supposed to stop this, but didn't. Even as their familiar home of the guild building became clear, none cheered up. Gray was still clutching Lucy's keys firmly in his hand. Then, before they knew it, they were at the entrance.

"We're back." Makarov called out lifelessly. All heads turned to them, slightly shocked by their grim faces.

"Took you long enough." A voice called out, and their eyes widened. Sitting at her usual barstool was Lucy. She sat next to a man with a cloak on, hair black as night. Zeref.

"L-Lucy..." Erza said, her voice breaking. People were surprised by this, as the cool Erza wasn't there. "Y-You're..."

"Yes I'm here, but for only one thing." Her voice was cold and rich in hate, making all the guild flinch. She was just the usual Lucy a second ago, talking, laughing, but with a man. Mirajane didn't fail to comment, but she was ignored. Yet, here Lucy was, practically spitting at her closest friends.

"Lucy?" Levy asked her, stepping in her way. Unusually, when she returned, she didn't say anything to her, or anyone even, apart from one thing. "Will you always follow Master?", which people only replied with "Yes." before she ignored them, and just sat on her stool with an unknown man.

"Move." She said, voice cold as ice. Levy didn't comply. She didn't know what to do, no one did. They all looked at her with worried eyes. Lucy mentally gave her a time limit, which she breeched, so she pushed her aside. Hard. Mirajane gasped in horror as the guild saw Lucy shove Levy with so much power that she was flung across the guild, landing with a thud. Lucy remained unfazed, but inside she was surprised at how much power she had, and how much she just didn't care for her former nakama.

This wasn't the Lucy the guild knew. A violent, cold and strong woman who didn't even blink before throwing her best friend into danger. She had changed, in just the last day since they saw her, she had completely changed. They wanted her old, soft and gentle nature back.

No one else tried to intercept her. Wendy ran to check on Levy, who was unconscious and bleeding from various cuts which she be began to heal. Lucy stomped up to Makarov, who was looking incredibly guilty and sad. "Lucy..." He started, but she held up he hand and stopped him.

"I don't want to hear it. Just give me my keys back, Makarov." The bitterness and pain in her voice was evident, and the whole guild wondered just what had happened between them.

"Lucy." Gray said, holding her keys. She reached for them, but he stopped her. "Just answer me a question. Is that him?"

Lucy growled at him. "Yes, but that's none of your business. You all lost any right to tell me to do anything." She glared at him, and snatched her keys back. "We're done here." She announced, turning to the cloaked figure. He nodded and began to walk towards her.

"Lucy, what happened?" Mirajane asked quietly. Lucy just glared at her.

"Stop!" The shout came from the entrance, behind Team Natsu. Everyone turned to see the Rune Knights rushing in to surround Lucy and the hooded man. "By order of the Magic Council, Lucy Heartfilia you are under arrest for mass murder, use of Dark Arts and suspicion of being ally's with the black wizard Zeref!"

There was an audible gasp that occurred throughout the guild. Lucy being in league with Zeref? They all thought that was preposterous, but the looks on Team Natsu and their Master's faces begged to differ.

Lucy quickly flipped through her keys and found one. Aries. She had always said she wanted to change. Now was time to see if she would. Closing her eyes, she contacted Aries.

_"M-Master?_" She stuttered

_"Ok, I don't have lots of time." _ Lucy quickly replied.

_"Y-Y-Your m-magic, it's d-d-dark..." _ She stuttered.

_"Yes, but I need your help. I'm trapped without any connection, and if I summon any Spirit with this magic, it'll not work if I don't have permission from them to use it. It will change you. Do you accept?"_

There was a moments silence. Lucy inwardly sighed. She wasn't going to do it, she was-

_"Yes, I will."_ Aries suddenly replied, the first time without stuttering. Lucy smiled.

She pulled the keys out and everyone gasped as she poured her magic into Aries' key. The gold began to crack, and flake, then it shattered, leaving an identical key, but made entirely of black. "Open the Gate of the Ram! Aries!" She called, and a black circle appeared.

What stepped out surprised everyone. Aries was known as the 'Pushover Zodiac', the one that anyone could overpower. But the woman that stepped out, wasn't a pushover. It was a woman with red demon horns, long, dark purple hair, and she wore a black woollen bikini. It showed her stomach, and barely covered her chest and other areas.

"Hello, boys."

The voice visibly shocked Lucy. It was a seductive voice, and it made everyone in the guild shiver. Every guy in the guild stared with their mouth open, drooling, while the girls were all just... Gobsmacked. The Rune Knights were the most affected, because they dropped their weapons, and just stared at her with lustful eyes.

"Hmm..." She wondered, stepping forward with a loud clang. She was wearing black high heels, boots that ran up to her knees. She slowly stepped to the Rune Knights and looked to Lucy for a command. "What should I do, hime?"

Lucy didn't hesitate. "Kill them."

Aries smiled, and waved her hand at their clothing, which began to tighten and cause cuts, slowly getting tighter and tighter. The guild watched in horror as Lucy smiled. Finally, they choked their last breath, and fell to the floor, blood pooling around them. Aries turned and disappeared into a black circle.

Before anyone could absorb anything that had just happened, Lucy turned to her hooded friend. "Let's go, Zeref." She smiled, grabbing his hand. The both of them turned into a black mist, leaving the bewildered guild behind.

* * *

**Thus, chapter 2 officially ends! Yeah, I had this almost wrote, but I accidentally deleted it... Meh. So, enjoyment? Yay or nay? R&R (still, no clue...).**

**Thanks to all those who reviewed the last chapter!**

** ───Ｏ（≧∇≦）Ｏ──── **

**~Nom Nom :3**


	3. Mirajane and Happy

**Disclaimer: If you look at me under the right light, then close your eyes and imagine the author of Fairy Tail, I'm still not Hiro Mashima, so I don't technically own anything. Oh well, he's awesome!**

**(((o(*ﾟ▽ﾟ*****)o)))**

**So... Many... Reviews, Follows, Favourites... For my story! I think I had a fit or something! I'm like, OMG PEOPLE ACTUALLY LIKE WHAT I'VE WROTE! I couldn't believe myself. I FEEL SO GIDDY! I don't think I've stopped feeling giddy since I posted the first chapter.**

**（≧∇≦）**

**Thanks to all the support off all the people who like it! One reviewer (Selenity De Lunar) even said I should make the cheers longer! I'm taking it as a compliment that it was so good, and if that's not what it meant... Oh well!**

**So next chapter! This one is one I've been dying to write, it involves... Well, just read to find out! 〜（ゝ。∂）****Support please! Review it please!**

**~Nom Nom :3**

**PS: Ok, I googled 'define R&R', but I got 'rest and relaxation'... So I'm guessing that's wrong? Could someone please tell me what it means?**

* * *

**Third:**

**Mirajane and Happy**

* * *

Lucy used the black mist to transport them back to their island. It was easier than she thought, all she needed to do was imagine the place, then wrap her magic around whatever she was teleporting and voila! It used up practically none of her magic power that she had stored, making her feel slightly suspicious to Zeref. He was supposed to be so powerful, a d the fact that she felt her magic returning so fast made her suspicions increase. He lied to her, but why? She needed to confront him...

When they landed back on the island, she felt pleased with herself. She proved to her guild members that she wasn't weak, even though it was hard, but not as hard as she thought. When she pushed Levy, it was easy to not care, but she still was slightly worried. Even though she even ought right said that they'd follow Makarov's decision, she didn't want to kill them. Well, not Levy anyway...

With her feet firmly on the ground, she turned to Zeref, eyes blaring. They felt like old friends, even though she hasn't know him for a full day yet. He made her feel absolutely complete and content, something even Fairy Tail failed to do. Trying her best to act bitchy, she flicked her blonde hair over her shoulder and put her hands on her hips. She gave him her best 'you-know-what-you've-done' look.

"Care to explain?" She asked, maintaining her bitchy composure. She used one of her old heiress friends as a model, and so far it was working.

"Explain what?" He faked innocence. Since he met her, he'd been slowly feeding her magic, causing her emotions to heighten. Things like hate and betrayal towards her former guild, and her attraction and trust towards him. How she just wouldn't care for life. However, it didn't erase other emotions entirely, only she could do that.

"You know what!" She growled, his fake innocence pushing her limits. She was so attracted to him, but that annoyed her. Why did he have to be so... Perfect? It would be easier to suspect him if he didn't save her, much easier to confront him if he didn't look so handsome and muscular. All she felt like doing was just to stare at him and drool. "The 'two weeks' bullshit! That felt like nothing. Nothing, and you're supposed to be über Mage or something! Either you are really pitiful with a big mouth, or you lied."

Ah, he was just waiting for this. He knew this would come, but he was surprised, both at how long it took for her to click, but also how fast she did it. Hopefully, she was corrupt enough, her taste for the Dark Arts large enough for her to follow the path. So he decided to twist the truth. "I lied to protect you. I saw the pain you went through, so I thought if you learnt strong magic, you wouldn't be put through that again. But I was afraid that if I didn't push you with the 'Dark Mist', you'd completely reject it." His acting skills had improved, he thought. His little speech was better than he thought, and he saw it crack the suspicion in her eyes.

"I hate to admit it, but thanks for doing that. Now I'll be able to show that guild that cutting me off was the worse decision in their history!" She smiled to him, and he felt his heart speed up. It surprised him, he wasn't supposed to react to her like that. She was compatible with him, but he shouldn't care. Shouldn't. But he did.

Her mind was focused on her ex-guild mates faces. Their surprise when she was cold to them, the shock when she hurt Levy... The absolute horror when the Rune Knights appeared, and she used the corrupted Aries to kill them... She felt guilty. Not for killing the Rune Knights - for some reason, she just didn't care - but for using her Spirit, her friend, and corrupting her.

Zeref saw her weakness, and saw it as an opportunity to score points, so he pulled her into his embrace. Yet, the intention left him as soon as he did so, and he just wanted to comfort her. He could sense with his magic her guilt, and he wanted to help her... It made him feel strange, and weak. He didn't like it. When she had calmed herself down, she faced him with new determination. She wasn't weak, and so she shouldn't act like it. She was going to be strong. Zeref decided to start a new stage in her training.

"Summon Aries again." He said, and she complied.

"Open the Gate of the Ram! Aries!" She shouted, holding out the only black key she had. As before, the black circle appeared and Aries stepped out. She still had black wool barely covering her, with her red demon horns shining in the light.

"Hime, hello." She said with her seductive voice. "I was just entertaining Leo and Taurus. What do you need?" Even though her self confidence had sky rocketed, Lucy noticed that she still was very polite and respectful to her.

"Just wait." Zeref ordered, making Lucy raise an eyebrow at him, but she said nothing. They waited a few seconds, until Loke appeared before them. He was wearing his signature designer suit, with a white undershirt and his tie loosely hanging from his neck. His orange hair was, as usual, spiky like a mane of a lion, but he looked more messy than usual, his undershirt almost completely unbuttoned, and his cheeks stained red.

When he looked at Aries his face turned a darker shade of red, and then he turned to Lucy. His hazel eyes were... Curious, lustful, and weak. Aries had complete dominance over him, as she strode over with her knee-height leather boots. She seductively moved her hand onto his body and walked around him, moving her hand with her. He just stood frozen in place, face completely red.

Lucy couldn't help but laugh at him. He was supposed to be the ultimate playboy, but Aries was walking all over him, making him respond in ways that he couldn't control. She leaned in close to his ear and whispered something so quiet and soft, so only he could hear it.

"Join me."

It was a command. The shy and somewhat pitiful Aries had been replaced with this temptress, who was slowly working her magic with Loke. His face slowly changed to something of need and lust for Aries. After what felt like an eternity to him, he nodded towards Lucy.

Not wasting a second, she fished out Loke's golden key, and held it out in front of her. "Open the Gate of the Lion! Leo!" She shouted, pouring her magic into the second key. Normally, this would be her limit with summoning Spirits, but she barely felt affected at all.

The golden key cracked, much like it did for Aries' key, and the golden shell flaked off to reveal his black key. Yet, the most amazing transformation occurred to him. His upper body became bare, his chest prominent, and the clothes dissolving off him. His lower body had the suit pants replaced with jeans that had chains hanging from it. He wore large black boots, which looked like they were coated in metal. His green Fairy Tail mark on his back turned black, and warped into a large tattoo that wrapped around his stomach and covered his back and arms. His face got piercings, three in either ear, one in his mouth and one above his left eyebrow. His hair had turned to a dark brown, and his eyes turned black, like Aries' eyes had.

As soon as he finished transforming, he kissed Aries. It got very intimate very quickly, and Lucy was forced to cough incredibly loudly to catch their attention. Loke's hands had golden knuckledusters on them, the equivalent of his old ring magic. They looked rather disappointed when they broke apart, and Loke looked at Lucy with a bored expression.

"Hmm?"

"Could you ask the other spirits about this?" Zeref asked them. Aries nodded, and then so did Loke, albeit rather reluctantly. He yawned and began to kiss Aries before they disappeared back into a black circle.

"Well, what do we do now?" Lucy asked Zeref after the two Spirits left. She was in shock at how much the two had changed. They normally danced around the relationship they had, Loke being a stupid playboy and Aries being a overly-polite weakling. But now they were openly devouring each other, making Lucy feel slightly like a matchmaker.

He simply smiled at her. "Now, you train!"

* * *

Lucy and the man in the cloak, who was supposedly the black wizard Zeref disappeared in front of them in a black mist. No one could believe their eyes. It was Lucy, their Lucy, and she ordered her Spirit to kill people. The Spirit itself was corrupted, with the normal Aries long gone replaced with an evil vixen. Not only that, both appeared to be unaffected by the death of the two Rune Knights that they killed.

Silence fell upon the frozen guild. No one moved. No one wanted to. Levy was still unconscious, with Wendy quietly healing her, but no one wanted to go to her, to admit that it was actually Lucy who did this, their very own Celestial Mage. Some hoped that it was just a dream, or that she was forced, but a few knew. The Dragon Slayers could smell the corruption on her, tainting her unique chocolate and ash scent with an acidic smell that almost burned their nostrils. The powerful Mages among them could sense that her power was dark, evil, something that she never had before. Although they hoped that it wasn't the truth, they knew that they weren't going to get Lucy back.

Then Levy awoke. It was like all the tension in the room snapped, and everyone began to talk at once, rushing to whomever they could find. The main focal points were Team Natsu and Levy, with questions flying at them. They were overwhelmed, and Erza was in a very bad mood. She just saw one of her greatest friends murder in front of her, so she was... No words could describe what she felt. Hurt, confused, angry, betrayed, shocked, sad, and worst of all, scared. She was afraid of Lucy, at what just a few hours did to her and her magic. She needed to vent herself in some way, any way, and unfortunately the guild was there.

"SHUT UP!" She roared, voice louder and more fierce than ever before. People physically winced and stepped back, from the sheer force her voice projected. Silence fell almost instantly, people shocked and afraid of the fuming Erza. She looked close to snapping, hands in fists which were shaking, and eyes glaring harsher than ever before.

It was Master Makarov that spoke next. He made his way to the bar and, with the help of Mirajane (who was unusually wearing a tank top, jean shorts and boots), stood atop it. "Gather all of Fairy Tail. Cancel missions, cancel appointments, just cancel everything." He said, voice strong, but with and edge of weakness to it. "In an hour you will all know what has happened. I don't want to repeat myself." He turned towards Mirajane. "I want Natsu, Gray, Erza and Lisanna in my office. No one can follow, and if they do, you have permission to use Satan Soul on them."

The directness of the Master shocked Mirajane, but she just nodded. Her mind fell back to when Lucy entered the guild with the mystery man. She should've noticed it then, because she returned alone and didn't announce her return, even though it was an unwritten rule to the guild. When the two sat at the bar, she asked "Will you always follow Master?", and Mirajane just replied a hesitant "Yes?" before she completely ignored her, not even asking for drinks. She didn't even blink when she commented on her together with a man.

"Master, what about..." Her voice trailed of, looking at the two helpless bodies on the floor, whose faces were trapped in an eternal sleep. Just knowing that one of her friends, one of her family did this, made her feel sick. She just wanted everything to go back to what it was.

"Inform the Magic Council." He sighed before walking off to his office, followed by Team Natsu minus Lucy. Then another person popped into her mind. Happy. And, as if on cue, a voice echoed from the entrance.

"Aye, what's up?"

Mirajane turned to see the blue cat Happy flying in with the white cat Carla, both blissfully unaware of the horrors that had happened. Even though no one said a word, a unanimous agreement passed through their minds. Mirajane would break the news. She knew that they wanted her to, because of all the heads turning to her, she just didn't know why. She wasn't close to them like the Dragon Slayers, nor knowledgeable about them like the group who went to Edolas. She was just the S-Class barmaid Mirajane, yet it was enough for them all to just dump responsibilities onto her, as usual. And, as usual, she acted fine with it, even though it destroyed her on the inside.

"Happy, Carla... I need to tell you two something." She sighed, gesturing to the bar in front of her. The two cats complied and sat down. There was small talk all over the guild, but everyone was listening in to their conversation, hoping they wouldn't take it too badly. "We don't really know what's happened, Master will explain it properly later." She sighed.

"Yeah, so this is about...?" Happy asked, waiting to know who. He didn't notice how the guild was different, how everyone was on edge, but Carla did. And she noticed the bodies. She knew that whoever she said would be responsible.

"Lucy." She said, almost in tears, making Carla's heart stop. Lucy was a powerful Mage, but she couldn't kill someone without help... Her Spirits. The thought hit her like a wall. She used one of her Spirits to kill them... No, she was getting ahead of herself. It might've been an accident. Lucy wouldn't, no she couldn't do that... Right?

"She..." Mirajane continued, trying not to tear up. "She hurt Levy, summoned Aries and ordered her to kill two Rune Knights. Then she escaped with a man, who they said was Zeref."

Carla was upset. She knew Lucy, was actually very close with her, but she knew that she didn't have that I her... Well, thought she knew anyway. Happy was laughing like it was a joke, but Carla knew better. The guild's air sat heavy on their shoulders, with depressed faces. Happy, even though he was dense, knew that this was no joke. Then he saw the bodies.

"No..." He muttered, eyes watering. Tears fell fast and heavy. "No!" He said again, shouting this time. The guild expected this, but not what he said next. "You're lying! You're all lying! Lucy wouldn't do that! She is our nakama! We don't lie about them!"

Mirajane looked distraught. "Happy..."

"No! I don't believe you! How could you! I'll find Lucy and prove this wrong!" He shouted, his Aera magic creating his wings. He flew out the door before anyone could react, and off into the distance. "Lucy..." He cried.

The guild began to give Mirajane dirty looks, like it was her fault. That was the last straw. She just snapped. Her emotions reached the point of explosion. "That's it!" She screamed, extremely out of character. "I can't take this anymore! You all look at me like I'm filth, and then blame me because of doing what none of you had the guts to do!" She felt out of control, her annoyance and hate overpowering her one emotion it shouldn't: her love. She was pissed, and it all poured out now, from a buildup of everything. She put her hand over her guild mark and used the magic she learnt from the Master, something that he said to only use in dire emergencies. She removed her guild mark. People stared at her, shocked by what she was doing. This wasn't the Mirajane they knew. Then she ran.

"Mira-nee!" Elfman shouted running to her, but she was already out the guild doors, changing into the Take Over: Satan Soul. She looked back, at them and gave a sad smile. A goodbye. "Mira-nee, no!" He shouted even louder, making his guild mates stand to rush to him, only to see Mirajane disappear into the sky.

She flew into a single direction, with only a single thought in her mind. Lucy. She needed to see her again, confront her, even if it was only for one last time. But where was she? She just flew in a single direction, hoping to both lose her perusing brother and find Lucy.

"Lucy..."

She turned her head to see a blue feline a little away from her. She swung herself into a path so that they would be able to talk. Her black bat-like wings made that easy, but the cat managed to spot her from these, so he attempted to fly away. But he failed, as she far outranked him in terms of speed. It only took her seconds to grab his tail with her greenish scaled hands.

"Happy!" She shouted.

"No, I won't go back! I won't until I find Lucy!" He cried.

"I understand! I need to clear things up with her too!" She shouted back. He sniffed and looked relieved. He stopped his Aera Magic and grabbed onto her back. "Let's go!"

Elfman watched as his sister disappeared into the sky. He had regained a sister to lose another. Mirajane was acting differently, she even went to the extent of abandoning her guild, her family, to... Do what? Why did she even need to go to Lucy? Did she value that killer over her own flesh and blood? She just betrayed the guild. Pitifully, he walked back to the guild to break the news.

* * *

Controlling emotions was hard. He had managed to strengthen the lust and reliance Lucy had for him, and the hate for her former guild, but she was obviously still distraught, and therefore didn't pour herself fully into the Dark Arts. She needed someone, someone other than him, like a friend or maybe a pet. So he decided to get one.

He teleported himself to the Fairy Tail building he was about 5 minutes beforehand to see their master addressing the guild. "Gather all of Fairy Tail. Cancel missions, cancel appointments, just cancel everything. In an hour you will all know what has happened. I don't want to repeat myself." He turned towards the white-haired barmaid, who he remembered Lucy calling Mirajane. "I want Natsu, Gray, Erza and Lisanna in my office. No one can follow, and if they do, you have permission to use Satan Soul on them."

"Master, what about..." Her voice stopped, and she looked at the floor which had the two bodies collapsed on it. It looked like she felt sick from looking, but she still did so.

"Inform the Magic Council." The old guy sighed before walking off to behind the bar, followed by a guy with pink hair, a guy with black hair, a girl with short white hair and a girl with long red hair

"Aye, what's up?" Asked a voice from the entrance. There was a blue cat flying in with a white cat. Just seeing them made him almost jump. This would be perfect for Lucy as company...

All the heads turned to the barmaid. She was looking to the two cats, and he could sense that she felt a pressure from them which made her both shrivel up and explode on the inside, but her face remained composed. Zeref raised an eyebrow. He thought that this woman was fairly interesting too... She would do as a friend for Lucy, even better than getting a random girl, because Lucy appeared to idolise the woman.

"Happy, Carla... I need to tell you two something." Mirajane sighed, gesturing to the bar in front of her, and the two cats sat down. All over the guild, people were staring at them, with a little help from his magic, and me made the pressure her. "We don't really know what's happened, Master will explain it properly later." She continued.

"Yeah, so this is about...?" The blue cat he assumed to be called Happy asked. He appeared not to notice how the guild was different, how everyone was on edge, or even the bodies on the floor. He was extremely dense and interesting, unlike the white cat who noticed on first glance. He thought it was amusing, so he manipulated the guild to just leave the bodies there for a little longer.

"Lucy. She..." Mirajane stopped, looking fairly upset. He toned that up a notch. "She hurt Levy, summoned Aries and ordered her to kill two Rune Knights. Then she escaped with a man, who they said was Zeref."

The white cat got upset, but Happy laughed. He was surprised, and very interested, because he thought it was a joke. But then came the tears and realisation. Zeref just twisted Happy's judgment so that he must get answers from Lucy. Then he inserted mistrust to the other guild members. "No... No! You're lying! You're all lying! Lucy wouldn't do that! She is our nakama! We don't lie about them!"

"Happy..."

"No! I don't believe you! How could you! I'll find Lucy and prove this wrong!" He shouted before lying out.

The entire guild felt sad, but many felt like Mirajane had a little part in it, and so he majorly amplified it so that they gave her dirty looks. Mirajane on the other hand was much easier to use. All he needed to do was remove a layer or so of love and all the anger, annoyance and grievances came pouring out. "That's it! I can't take this anymore! You all look at me like I'm filth, and then blame me because of doing what none of you had the guts to do!" This wasn't enough, though. She needed to do something that was more permanent, that was made it easier to cut ties. Then he remembered the significance of the guild mark, so he made her hate hers. Then she removed it and ran off.

"Mira-nee!"

He looked around to see a muscular guy with white hair. He was chasing the figure of his sister and he cursed. He didn't prepare her for this! It'd ruin it! What he'd worked for very hard, hard enough to actually make him feel somewhat tired. It was going to be fruitless. Yet, it wasn't. She turned, gave him a sad smile, then flew off, without him assisting her decisions. The emotional bonds were being severed quicker than he anticipated. All he needed to do was steer her to the cat, and make it so if they ever returned, they'd resent them for it. Unfortunately, that ment Lucy too.

Weaving his magic like a blanket, he coated everyone with the guild mark with resentment, annoyance, mistrust and ultimately hate for Lucy, Mirajane and Happy. It was a costly spell, but he wouldn't need to monitor it, as it would bloom on its own. With that done, he teleported himself to the runaway pair.

He appeared in front of them while they were over a forest. Mirajane came to a sudden stop, eyes somewhat wavering, and Happy eyed him curiously. He decided to twist the truth yet again, to make them come with him.

"You two want to meet with Lucy, right?" He asked innocently, something he had began to do so well. They just nodded to him. "Well, I'll need your help with something. You see, Lucy needs friends with her to stay by her, or else she won't be able to support her own magic. This is something you two can help her with. There isn't much time, and of you don't, she will die." He wasn't lying per se, but it wasn't threatening her life. Well, they didn't need to know that. "Will you help her?"

* * *

Lucy sat at the campfire, bored. Zeref teleported away almost half an hour ago, after saying she should train. But what? She had practically perfected her Dark Mist, and was able to teleport so fast that she could be in two places at once. She could do her contracts, but she wanted to wait until Zeref got back before she did that.

When Loke appeared after 10 minutes, she was shocked by the fact that he was only wearing his boxers. They were a tight fit and made her blush. "They all agree." He said simply before disappearing into a black circle. She figured that he was with Aries getting a little... Freaky.

What was she to do? She missed the guild at points like this. Not the people, just the atmosphere, how it was never quiet, never boring, never dull. She always had someone to talk to, about something that was done by others that made them laugh. She would do anything not to be alone anymore...

Then Zeref appeared. He always had done, doing things for her, protect her, save her, make her feel at home again. She sighed helplessly. He had become too important to her. They met less than a day ago, but already she felt like she couldn't imagine life without him. She ran over to talk to him, until she noticed the two people with him. Mirajane and Happy. She gave them a dirty look, which made Mirajane flinch.

"Why are they here?" She spat. It would only take her a second to send them back, or do something worse, but Zeref brought them here for a reason. A reason which made him smile.

"They're here for something you wouldn't think." He said. "They're here to join us."

* * *

**Bam! Le end of la chapter! To be honest, I forgot about Happy in chapter 1, 2 and again in this chapter! I felt so stupid. But thankfully it worked out for the best, and this story is progressing!**

**(o^^o)**

**Sorry for those who want to see Zeref x Lucy stuff, but that won't happen for a little while. I want to build up the story first. But I promise it will come, just patience! So please review for me, and I will love you forever! And to all those who already have... THANK YOU!**

**~Nom Nom :3**


	4. Bonds

**IMPORTANT NOTE AT BOTTOM! PLEASE READ!**

**Disclaimer: If you look at me under the right light, then close your eyes and imagine the author of Fairy Tail, I'm still not Hiro Mashima, so I don't technically own anything. Oh well, he's awesome!**

**(^ω^)**

**Over 50 follows... I was like (((o(*ﾟ▽ﾟ*****)o))) (I don't feel like anything else could describe the feeling) with everything. Now I feel I've going STOP IT PEOPLE BEFORE I DIE OF GIDDINESS! But OMG I love you all for your likes and etc, so thanks!**

**(＞人＜****;)**

**Ok, so I didn't make it clear least chapter. This is a Lucy x Zeref FF, but what I meant was not that they wouldn't happen, but it would take them a while to progress their relationship. I got lots of PMs and I think even a review about it, so I thought I should clear it up with everyone.**

**Ok, so now it's getting close. I have something that I want to write, but I don't know if it'll get that far yet, but I'll see when I write it. Sorry if this or the previous chapter seems late, but school's been hectic, and I've been ill too much already. I've just been writing this to pass the time. So yeah, enjoy!**

**~Nom Nom :3**

**PS: I would say check out my other stories, but meh. Just review, favourite and follow this one and I'll be like "OMG, I LOVE YOU SO MUCH!" or something less creepy...**

* * *

**Fourth:**

**Bonds**

* * *

When Zeref appeared before them, Mirajane didn't know what to think. The black wizard Zeref was normally portrayed as a evil, ruthless, killing machine, yet who appeared before her and Happy was nothing but a small child. He looked weak to her, and he was begging. Tears were in his black eyes, threatening to fall, his face showing just pain. She was somewhat taken aback, from the drastic difference between what everyone said, and the reality.

"You two want to meet with Lucy, right?"

The words shocked her even more, but she felt like she shouldn't be surprised. She tried to not let that show on her face, but it was hard, and she didn't trust her voice, so she just nodded.

"Well, I'll need your help with something." He continued. "You see, Lucy needs friends with her to stay by her, or else she won't be able to support her own magic. This is something you two can help her with. There isn't much time, and of you don't, she will die." He looked distraught when he said it, making Mirajane believe his words, even though it was against her better judgement. "Will you help her?"

The phrase "she will die" echoed in her head. Lucy would die? Why? She didn't know what had happened to her, but she sensed that her magic had been... Different. Corrupted. She didn't know what happened, but she knew that Lucy wouldn't have done something like that on purpose unless it was a dire emergency, and she wasn't able to do what the rest of the guild had done - abandon her.

Lucy was a special person to her. She was to everyone in the guild, but to her she was like a little sister, someone she thought she lost when Lisanna 'died'. They grew close, and she even pretended to be her when Phantom Lord attacked. She convinced herself that it was because they were nakama in the guild, but it was hard. And when Lisanna came back, it was then that she knew.

When she and Elfman visited her grave that day, she was sad like normal. Yet, when Lisanna came running to them, she was overjoyed. Their sister, the one who they thought was dead, was coming to them. The rain poured over them, soaking the three of them, but not one of them cared. They were a family again.

It took the next week or so for her to notice it, but her bond with Lisanna... It wasn't there. She was just like a new member of the guild. Even though she tried and tried, wanting it so much, she just couldn't connect with her. Whenever she thought of the sister bond, only Lucy came to her mind. Her existence was bigger than she imagined, but she couldn't actually say that. Then it happened.

Lucy came back earlier from a mission with a man. She wasn't with the rest of Team Natsu, and she was cold. Then Team Natsu returned, the Rune Knights were killed, and Lucy vanished. Master wouldn't explain, Happy wouldn't accept, and Mirajane just couldn't take it. She snapped, bawled at the guild and left, after removing her guild mark. She knew that she needed to find Lucy, to stand beside her, to protect her. It overpowered her bonds with the guild, which both scared her and made her happy, that she found someone that she'd risk everything for.

"Yes."

The word escaped from her lips before she could stop it. Zeref looked pleased, and awaited Happy's response, which was just a small nod. He smiled. "Then negate your magic, then we'll see her."

Mirajane nodded and, rather reluctantly, stopped her Takeover : Satan Soul and returned to her usual appearance and attire. Zeref grabbed her hand and a black mist cloaked the three of them, the same one which Lucy left the guild with. It made the world fall away, and made an eerie silence that made her uncomfortable, the only sound their breathing. Then, as soon as it came, it left. The world reformed in the shape of an island, with unique yellow and green foliage. Large tree trunks wrapped around one another, supporting a large second island above them. She knew this place. It was Tenrou Island, the place where the S-Class examination normally took place. It was normally protected from anyone who wanted to enter, only allowing the Guild Master and a select amount of others, so it made her wonder how they were there.

Lucy looked towards Zeref and started running, looking happy. It was a look that she missed in the guild. Happiness, hope, trust. All of that degraded to a cold front when she spotted Mirajane and Happy. Her warmth was gone, and her eyes were just a cold pit of hate and mistrust.

"Why are they here?" She spat at them, but it only made Zeref smile.

"They're here for something you wouldn't think." He said. "They're here to join us."

Lucy stared cynically at the three. Like Mirajane would abandon Fairy Tail - her home - to stay with Lucy. She just got her little sister back, the one everyone thought was dead, so she just didn't believe it. Yet, the more she looked at Zeref's pleased smile and Mirajane's somewhat desperate face, she wasn't so sure. She wasn't the closest to Mirajane, but she was always the one who she went to with anything, from advice to complaints, but there were plenty of people closer to the both of them. Like Erza to the both of them (although she couldn't see her betraying the Master), or Natsu and Gray to herself. Then again, Mirajane was one of the most loyal people to the Master...

Happy. He was there, with Mirajane. That was both even more unbelievable than Mirajane coming, yet the most believable. Lucy had a special bond with Happy. Ever since they met, they got on together like a house on fire. They teased each other, talked to each other, and they even did things together that they wouldn't do with Natsu. It wasn't because they were better friends than they were with Natsu, but because they were a different type of friends. She couldn't explain it, but they were really close.

But here they were. They didn't laugh, or reject what he said, only stared at her. Lucy looked at Mirajane's and almost gasped. Her eyes were determined and strong, with hints of sadness and depression, but the thing that caught her attention. It was he guild mark - or more the lack of it. Her left thigh was bare, her usual white mark gone. Se looked about her skin, thinking she got the position wrong, but she didn't.

"As you can see... Lucy, we've decided to leave Fairy Tail for... Our own reasons, and it wouldn't sit right with me to leave you alone. I want - no, we want to stay with you. Can we?" Mirajane asked, eyes pleading with Lucy. She felt desperate for her to say yes.

Lucy looked at Mirajane and Happy, tears in her eyes. She wanted to hate them, she so wanted to, she wanted to say no, to tell them where to shove it, but she couldn't. Her heart had stopped hating them, and it felt relieved to see them, even better for them to say that. She felt like she wasn't alone anymore. Zeref was perfect company, but she needed a girl there, so she could have girl talk with her. And Happy... He was special. They both were. For some reason, she felt like it was just these two who she didn't want to leave behind. Slowly, she nodded.

They all smiled, and Lucy ran to hug the two. The embrace was familiar, and felt like home. It felt like her time in Fairy Tail wasn't just a waste anymore, but just a prelude to her new and better life. If she didn't go there, she wouldn't be where she was now, and she felt like she belonged.

Mirajane felt that her life in Fairy Tail was like a dream. A great one, but she always thought that it could get better. Especially when Lisanna 'died', she felt it just plateau into contentment. Nothing interesting, or remotely different happened. Then Lucy joined.

It was like a chain of events happened. They went by unnoticed at first, but the fruit soon began to show. Team Natsu, Fairy Tail's strongest team formed. Their war with Phantom Lord. The 'Tower of Heaven'. The 'Harvest Festival', when Laxus attacked. The assault on Oración Seis. Edolas. Everything started after Lucy came to Fairy Tail, and Mirajane enjoyed it fully. Then she found out Lucy had left, and she couldn't stand returning to that dream-like state again. So, she followed her, and Lucy accepted her with open arms.

"This is touching and everything, but we need to get down to business." Zeref interrupted them.

"What business?" Lucy asked curiously, slightly wary of the subject.

"I'll explain it to you all." He said simply. "A Dark Arts practitioner, before being able to become master, must make 'Bonds' with people they fully trust." He said. He was tired from all the emotion influencing, and he wanted to make it so they'd trust one another without his constant help. So he made something up, lied through his teeth, hoping that it would work. If it didn't, it would destroy the 'focus object' - in other words, Mirajane. "When they do so, magic is shared between the two, but both can feel a tremendous boost from it. The catch is, however, the contractor, which would be Lucy, must be able to wholly place her life into the other's hands, you Mirajane, frequently, so they must be strong." He was absolutely winging it. He tried to make it sound dark, like something that was forbidden, but he didn't know if it worked. But it did.

The words sunk in. Lucy would need to completely trust Mirajane or she would die. Could she? Mirajane wasn't one of the people who betrayed her, from what it looked like to her, she actually somewhat stood up for her (well, she hoped that, anyway). She decided that she was probably the only person, other that Zeref (and maybe Happy) whom she could trust. Even when she asked her "Will you always follow Master?" she answered a hesitant "Yes?", somewhat unsure. She nodded.

Mirajane was shocked by the nod. She was trusted by Lucy! She felt ecstatic, knowing that the reason she left Fairy Tail was something worthwhile. Zeref also was pleased, and grabbed both of their left hands, placing Lucy's over Mirajane's. Thinking off the top of his head, he muttered some words while pulling their magic together.

"Do you, Mirajane Strauss, promise to serve and protect Lucy Heartfilia, for as long as your life will give?" He asked her.

"I do."

"And do you, Lucy Heartfilia, promise to trust Mirajane Strauss, for as long as your life will give?"

"I do."

Their magic wrapped around one another, bonding and sharing. He smiled as he split it apart, sending their magic back to their bodies. A small string still connected them, even when their hands separated. Zeref smiled and thought of something Lucy would like. He clapped his hands and shouted something. "It is done!" He cried, while forming a black key in his hands. It was a plain key, with only an elegant 'M' on the handle showing anything different. He handed the key to Lucy.

"That will call upon Mirajane like any of your spirits." He smiled, watching her amazed reaction. Out of the corner of his eye, he spotted a single silver streak of hair in her blond hair, the same colour as Mirajane's. when he looked over to Mirajane, she had a blond streak like Lucy did. But she also had a tattoo around her left thigh, where her guild mark was: a barbed wire band with a black key on it, identical to the one he handed Lucy, but with a 'L' instead of a 'M'.

They repeated the ritual with Happy, Zeref making sure he repeated the same words. He doubted that it would've worked, but it did, so he had more confidence. To be honest, he just copied from something he overheard from long ago, 'Knight Packs' or something like that. He just rearranged the words and messed with their magic, but it created great results, so he was pleased. It wasn't the first spell he created, but it was the first for such a... Menial thing.

Once it was done, Happy looked extremely different. He had a large blonde streak down his black (Lucy gained a blue streak in her hair) while his guild mark on his back turned black and into the key with the 'L' in the handle, like what Mirajane had. Yet, the most noticeable thing was the fact that his Aera Magic created black, demon wings instead of white, angelic ones. His magic had been corrupted, so Zeref suspected that Mirajane's magic had been too. But into what?

Zeref smiled to himself. It didn't matter, it was still a week until they came, so it could be found out. But first, he decided to get more people to make 'Bonds' with Lucy. Grinning, he disappeared in the Dark Mist, knowing exactly who to choose...

* * *

The guild was quiet. For the third time that day, everyone was quietly thinking about their nakama. First it was Lucy, now Mirajane and Happy had abandoned them. Who was next? Master still had Team Natsu in his office, and the rest of the guild was. Cana had used the Communication Lacrima to contact Gajeel and Juvia, the only missing Fairy Tail members, who had been on a mission since Team Natsu left. They were told nothing, but sensed something was up, and decided to return as fast as they could.

Inside the Master's office, Master Makarov was discussing something with Team Natsu. It was about Lucy's execution. "Lucy may be your nakama, but she has done something dreadful." He began, after a silence that stretched what seemed like an age to them. "She has used the Dark Arts to take lives, something that is forbidden. Not only that, the strength and use of her magic was the same as Zeref's magic. That we all know, but what I'm about to say must never leave this room. This is something that even the Magic Council is unaware of."

Erza tensed. "What is it?" She asked in a very small voice. She felt somewhat relieved that they weren't sitting in silence anymore, but the way the conversation had gone, she was slightly regretful.

Makarov sighed. This was something that he didn't want to share, something he discovered about Celestial Mages. About where the magic originally came from. It was something that involved Lucy, and so he decided that these people, people who she had trusted more than anyone, deserved to know. "Celestial Magic is not pure. It has roots in the Dark Arts." Silence met his words. Questions flooded all of their minds. They knew that he wasn't lying, because of his expression. It was dark, pained.

Lisanna was the first to speak. "But there are many Celestial Mages." She said, her voice so weak that it was barely audible. "Wouldn't someone find out and ban it or something?"

He shook his head. "They wouldn't ban it. It's too rare, and too powerful to destroy. The concept of Celestial Magic is to summon Spirits to do things for them. They are normally abused-" Images of Angel, Karen and Duke Everlue passed through their minds. "-and treat like slaves or mere objects. Dark Arts Magic has the same concepts."

"But Lucy treat her Spirits like her friends, not like objects!" Natsu protested. "She wasn't like that!"

"No, she wasn't, but that made her more powerful in her Celestial Magic, meaning that the Spirits trusted her more, and therefore meaning she was more attuned to the Dark Arts. And, like you saw with the Spirit Aries, she willingly let Lucy's corrupt magic corrupt her, something that is near impossible." He sighed. "It's hard to say this, but we've lost her. Lucy will never return... Or at least the Lucy we knew will never return..."

A loud scream interrupted them, and all five of them rushed out of the room. It was Levy, who was crying buckets, with Cana comforting her, staring angrily at the Communication Lacrima, which now had a large crack in it.

"What happened?" Master asked, looking around the room for Mirajane to explain, but she was nowhere in sight. Confused, he looked at Cana. "Where's Mirajane?" The name made the atmosphere turn tense in the guild. Elfman growled angrily, while Evergreen tried to calm him down.

"Master, we've been betrayed." Cana said quietly.

3 Minutes Earlier

It happened about 5 minutes after Cana talked to Gajeel and Juvia through the Communication Lacrima. Levy was behind the bar, attempting to serve the guild in the, what appeared to be, the permanent absence of Mirajane. She was serving Cana a barrel of alcohol, something she could barely lift, when the Communication Lacrima started to glow, signalling an incoming call.

Cana couldn't be bothered, and was too engrossed with drowning herself in her alcohol, that she just grunted something to Levy that was either a "You." or a complaint. She decided to answer it, judging that it was up to her. To her delight (although she wouldn't admit it) she answered it see Gajeel.

"H-Hey Gajeel!" She blushed shyly. Her heart was throbbing at the mere sight of the Iron Dragon Slayer, her secret crush. Well, it was not-so-secret, but people still pretended to be unaware of the budding romance between them, and she remembered when he left a few days ago. He was so sweet to her, and when she kissed him on his cheek and confessed to him, he just blushed and ran away on a mission with Juvia. She was just waiting for him to return.

Yet he seemed pissed. Actually, pissed didn't cover it. He was foaming, his red eyes glowing with anger and he snarled - physically snarled - at her. "Hey shorty, where the fuck is bunny-girl?" His tone of voice was sharp and it felt like a razor to her ears. The coldness of his voice hurt her, and it felt like her heart was being squeezed.

"G-Gajeel?" She stuttered, slightly shocked at his sudden snarl. It wasn't like him. "W-W-What's wrong?"

He growled at her. It was a deep, menacing and it sent a shiver down her spine. It drew attention from the guild, and it even caused Cana to stop drinking. She grumbled something about 'never being able to drink anymore', but walked over to the shaking Levy. She looked to the Communication Lacrima to glare at him, but she immediately stopped short. The glare Gajeel was giving rivalled Erza, and behind him she could see Juvia, who was emitting such a dark aura that even Master Makarov himself would be afraid.

"Answer the question." Hissed Juvia in a voice that drew the attention from the whole guild, making them go quiet and stare at the Communication Lacrima. The two former Phantom Lord Mages were - to put it mildly - absolutely enraged. Gajeel was growling a deep growl that echoed through the entire guild while Juvia was silent, yet they created the same strong and eerie pressure.

They weren't themselves, that was a given. Yet, their words held raw emotion, such as pain, worry, fear and regret. But all they could convey was their anger.

"L-Lu-chan isn't h-here any m-m-more..." Levy stuttered, eyes filling with tears from the mere memory. "She l-left..."

"She betrayed us!" Hissed Cana. "Just like the bitch Mirajane and the rodent Happy!"

That grabbed Pantherlily's attention. "Happy too?" He muttered. Gajeel, however, was at breaking point. He growled in the deepest voice he could possibly go, making a primal growl that made the guild shiver and move uncomfortably.

"Don't expect us back! Ever!" He hissed, before the Communication Lacrima smashed, making Levy scream aloud. She was hurt on the inside, her heart shattered beyond repair. First it was her best friend Lucy, then it was her big sister figure Mirajane, now it was her secret crush Gajeel. The damage she took just made her slump down and whimper, eyes overflowing, and Cana hugged her. She let her heart out into Cana's arms.

It was then that the Master ran out of his office with Team Natsu. His eyes quickly surveyed the scene, and they filled with worry. "What happened?" He asked, looking around. When he couldn't find whatever he wanted, he stopped and looked at Cana with confusion. "Where's Mirajane?"

The mere mention made the guild tense up. Events that had happened just earlier replayed in their minds, making Elfman growl in extreme frustration. Evergreen looked worried, and tried to calm him down. Cana took charge, seeing as the question was mainly directed at her, and spoke very quietly.

"Master, we've been betrayed." She started, making his eyes widen. Team Natsu looked around the guild, Lisanna trying, and failing, to find her elder sister. "First Lucy betrayed us-"

"No she didn't!" Roared Gray, but she simply ignored him as Erza gave him a look which contained a 'well done' and a 'shut up'. He felt mildly pleased, but shut his mouth.

"Then Mirajane and Happy quit the guild to find her-". She tried again, but got cut off.

"WHAT?" Shouted Master Makarov, surprising the whole guild. Two stable members had quit, one was even an S-Class Mage, yet she quit to go to Lucy. He felt (somewhat regretfully) pleased that she was still treat like nakama to some, but he was regretful that they acted. It would only fuel the Magic Council's 'Fairy Hunt' more.

"Now Gajeel, Juvia and Pantherlily have left for good." Cana finished. The mention of Gajeel made Levy cry more into her arms, and the mention of Juvia made Gray turn pale. They left? Most of the guild heard the conversation, but they didn't realise the full implication until just now. Lucy, Mirajane, Happy, Gajeel, Juvia and Pantherlily wouldn't return to Fairy Tail.

They had been betrayed and abandoned by them.

Makarov couldn't understand his children. They all, apart from Team Natsu, had started to hate the six who left them. He couldn't change their hearts, but he knew that he could at least try. He sighed, and decided to proceed with the plan he had, which he almost canceled because of this with Lucy. He only hoped that he would make it in time, before the hate had become fear.

* * *

They stood in the middle of a forest. The trees stood about two men tall, with green leaves the size of their hands. Life was in action, with the usual small animal running across the forest floor. Gajeel, Juvia and Pantherlily were returning from their most recent job. They had left a couple of days ago to help save an old woman's house from bandits, who turned out to be incredibly strong. Yet, they handled it with ease, Gajeel and Juvia exploiting their knowledge of each other's attacks. It wasn't the fighting that took the time, but the distance to the guild. There were no trains anywhere close to her house, so then were forced to walk.

Gajeel shut off the Communication Lacrima. Cana had just told them to return back to the guild fast, her voice filled with unease. Something major had happened when they were gone, and his mind flickered to Levy, but focused on Lucy, the bunny girl. She made him worry, like an overprotective brother, but he mentally sighed. It was his on fault for positioning himself at that post, feeling guilty for the wounds he inflicted to her during their war.

Juvia's gasp interrupted his thoughts. He looked up to see a man form out of a black mist. He had black hair with night-black eyes, and wore old red robes that reminded the three of the past. Pantherlily was wary of the newcomer, but he only smiled at them.

"Hey." He smiled. "I'm here on behalf of Lucy."

"Bunny girl?"

"Love rival?"

Both Juvia and Gajeel spoke at the same time, making the man laugh. He acted carefree, but Gajeel could see that he was a calculating man who never put himself at a disadvantage. Juvia could too, but what he said made her think. Lucy normally used her Spirits for these things, not people. Something must be wrong.

"Something is indeed wrong." He said, as if reading he thoughts. "Fairy Tail had rejected Lucy. And she needs ally's to stand against the Magic Council."

Rejected? Stand against? He was talking fast, and Juvia could hardly understand much. But what she did get was that Lucy was in trouble, and needed their help.

"They rejected Lucy in her time of need, and now the whole world is against her. Therefore she needs ally's, people who she can trust. You are these people. You weren't there when she was abandoned, so she still has an open heart to you." He clapped his hands and a black circle appeared on the ground. "If you want to go and join her, step on that. Remember though: if you do so, you will be going against Fairy Tail." He smiled, then disappeared in a black mist.

Gajeel stood frozen for a moment, then looked at Juvia. "Juvia thinks that we should ask Fairy Tail." She suggested, both of them incredibly confused by the turn of events. Gajeel just sighed and looked down at the Communication Lacrima again. He used it, and waited until he got a response.

"H-Hey Gajeel!"

It was Levy who answered, much to Gajeel's displeasure. He really didn't want to speak with her. She kissed him for crying out loud! He didn't want to face her, and he hoped that he could've gotten another mission without meeting her. He wanted to talk to Juvia about it privately, so that's why he took the mission with her. Juvia was his closest friend in the guild, as close as Pantherlily was to him. He usually talked to her about his problems, and vice versa, and these problems normally took the form of three people: Levy, Gray and Lucy.

When he actually managed to look at the Communication Lacrima, he saw that Levy was blushing, her heart beating fast. This made him extremely angry for some reason. He thought that if the man was telling the truth, and they abandoned Lucy, her best friend shouldn't be blushing like a school girl talking to him. She should be out looking for her. He was so angry at the thought that he physically snarled at her.

"Hey shorty, where the fuck is bunny-girl?" He asked her, sharper than he wanted to. She visibly flinched at the words and his tone, but he somehow managed to stop himself from apologising.

"G-Gajeel?" She stuttered, her voice weak. "W-W-What's wrong?"

He growled, making her shiver. All around him in the forest, animals came to a stop, afraid of the sudden could-be predator. Through the Communication Lacrima, he could hear the guild come to a stop. He heard Cana mutter "I've never been able to drink properly anymore..." before joining Levy, who was now trembling. It looked like she wanted to be angry at him, but she just looked afraid at him. Behind him, Juvia was silent, but her presence overpowering. He could feel her anger slowly creep through the air, but he felt powered by it.

"Answer the question." Hissed Juvia in a voice that drew the attention from the whole guild, making them go quiet and stare at them. They looked absolutely terrified at them, but they didn't care. They were getting angrier and angrier by the minute.

"L-Lu-chan isn't h-here any m-m-more..." Levy stuttered, eyes growing wet from tears. "She l-left..." Gajeel felt his heart plummet. The man was speaking the truth.

"She betrayed us!" Hissed Cana, before he completely calmed down. "Just like the bitch Mirajane and the rodent Happy!"

"Happy too?" Gajeel heard Pantherlily mutter, but he was at breaking point. His anger exploded inside him, and he growled in the deepest voice he could possibly go, making a primal growl that made the guild shiver and the animals around him flee.

"Don't expect us back! Ever!" He hissed at them, before throwing the Communication Lacrima to the ground. It smashed into thousands of pieces, and Gajeel looked at Juvia. Unspoken words passed between them, and they grabbed each others hand before stepping onto the black circle, where a black mist consumed them.

* * *

Zeref smiled to himself as they stepped into the black circle. It was too easy making Fairy Tail members doubt their comrades. The Dragon Slayer and the Water Mage were fine examples. From their time before Fairy Tail, they had hate and anger towards everything, so he just directed these reserves to Fairy Tail. It barely used any magic from him, and it got what he wanted from them. Smiling, he used The Dark Mist to teleport back to Lucy.

* * *

Lucy had just finished summoning all her Golden Key Zodiac Celestial Spirits when it happened. All her Golden Keys were now Black. But what surprised her the most was the fact that she could summon all 9 of them at once, and barely feel the cost of it. Both Mirajane and Happy were impressed, and somewhat shocked at the major difference between now and what they used to look like.

First she summoned Loke and Aries. The punk-like Loke was, not surprisingly, in the arms of the purple haired Aries, and they were playing tonsil tennis. Mirajane did her typical girlish scream, and Happy did his usual "He liiiiikes her!" famous tongue roll. It made Lucy sigh and look at them.

"He's a playboy, so this shouldn't be anything new." Lucy sighed to Mirajane. It had barely been minutes since they made their 'Contract', but their hearts completely trusted one another. It was like what they felt like in Fairy Tail, absolute trust, but even stronger. They were family, not just nakama.

"Aye, but he never kissed anyone!" Happy said, flying with his new and improved wings. "He was a pure, pure boy until you came along and corrupted him."

Loke stopped kissing Aries long enough to give them a blank stare. It was just... Bored. He looked like he didn't care for anything, but when he turned to Aries, he smiled. He just cared for her, and it made Mirajane squeal again, and Lucy blushed. It reminded her of how Zeref looked at her... Wait, Zeref? Why did she think of him? She blushed deeper, and Mirajane gave a knowing look to Happy.

"Ooh, is someone on your mind~?" Mirajane sang, making Lucy turn many shades darker. Mirajane just laughed when Lucy ignored her.

Next she summoned Cancer. As the Golden Key turned black, she thought about how it was a safe option, because he was normally very calm and collective with her. When she saw him step out the black circle, surprise didn't cover it. What stepped out was a gangster man, with golden chains around his neck. He was wearing an white open vest which showed an surprising amount of muscles in his dark skin. He was wearing grey pants with black boots, and he had dropped his signature scissors in favour of two large machetes. Only his hair remained the same.

"Hello Lucy." He said, eyes hidden behind big black sunglasses. Mirajane stare at the man, and Happy looked at him confusingly.

"I thought he was the hair guy?" He asked Lucy, but she just shook her head.

"Mirajane, you explain." Lucy said, and Mirajane began to tell him about the affects of the magic on the Zodiac Keys. Lucy just proceeded onto the next Spirit, Virgo. She was somewhat fearful of summoning Aquarius and Taurus because her personality, so she wanted to at least summon all her other Spirits first, for some protection at least.

When Virgo's Key turned black, and the black circle appeared, Lucy was surprised yet again by how the Spirit changed. Virgo was no longer wearing her maid clothes, but now wore an black business suit with a white undershirt and a short skirt. She wore long, knee-high dark brown leather boots, and her white shirt was unbuttoned enough so a red bra could be seen. Her signature chains were still there, but now they were around her waist acting like a belt. Her pink hair remained the same, the usual maid headband replaced with a black one with two red horns coming from either side.

"Do you want to be punished, Hime?" She asked, spinning the chain around her waist.

"No you won't- wait, what?" Lucy asked, shocked. "Did you just ask if I wanted punishment?" She nodded. Lucy felt extremely uncomfortable, and slightly amused at the complete flip in her personality. "N-Mo, I'm fine Vigro." Virgo smiled, and Lucy moved onto another Golden Key, Sagittarius.

As the Golden Key cracked and flaked into a black one, she looked at her other Spirits. Lucy realised that even though they changed, many fundamental bits were the same. Their magic was the same, their relationships where more intensified, but they still were the same people. Then she wondered how Sagittarius would change, but couldn't. The way all the others changed had been so different, she could only guess.

When he appeared, she was somewhat disappointed. He appeared in the form she expected that he was to begin with: a centaur. He was a black horse with long legs, and had a grey saddle on his back, but where the head of the horse should've been was a man. He had pale white skin that was scarred, with a messy mop of black hair. He looked younger than he did, around her own age now, and still carried his bow, but it was now elegantly carved from bone, like the arrows in a leather-stitched quiver on his human back. He wore no clothing, and Lucy felt herself start to drool looking at him.

"Hime." He bowed. "However can thy help thee?" Lucy looked at him. He was probably the Spirit who she called upon the least, yet his manners didn't change. He spoke with somewhat a olden tongue, but she thought that his personality hasn't really been corrupted. "Shall Sagittarius help Hime? Or shall he disperse back from thine vision into the world before?" She looked at him confused. He was addressing himself in third person, and she thought the olden tongue he uses was not rightly used. However, it could've been worse, so she just shook her head and moved onto her next key. Gemini. This was one she was dying to see.

Two children stepped out, about 5 years old. One was a boy with pure white skin, with short black hair and completely black eyes, while the other was a girl with long night-black skin and pure white hair and completely white eyes. They wore what looked like Greek togas, the boy wearing what looked like the night sky, hanging from his left shoulder, while the girl wearing it mirrored, with it hanging from from her right shoulder, with what looked like a white sky with black stars on it. Both children looked expressionless.

"What do you require, Hime?" They said without any emotion. They sounded like adults, but their bodies were the same size as they were before.

"N-Nothing?" Lucy asked, slightly intimidated by them. They only nodded and walked off, keeping the exact distance between them the entire time. Shaking her head, she moved onto Scorpio. This was one she was wary of, because she liked him a lot, and he was always nice to her, and she hoped he didn't turn into what Aquarius was like with her. Swallowing her worry, she summoned him.

When he stepped out of the black circle, Lucy was extremely scared. What stepped out wasn't a human, but more like a cyborg. It looked like the gun-like scorpion tail on his back had split into eight separate guns, each of a different size and type. The left of his torso was metallic with metal plates and what looked like buttons on it. His right eye glowed red, and Lucy was fighting with her instinct to flee as he approached. Just before she caned to it, he went down on one knee, like a knight, and she could hear what sounded like machines working inside him.

"Hello, Hime-sama." He said, his voice with an underlying robotic sound to it. His head remained bowed, as if he was actually taking to a princess, and it made her feel awkward. It seemed like that was all that was she was feeling recently.

"Lift your head and address me normally, or else Aquarius will kill me." Lucy said to him, and the mention of his girlfriend made his head shoot up.

"Aquarius-sama?" He smiled, eyes shining. His right red eye physically glowed brighter, and Lucy shivered. He said Aquarius-sama? Just what would their relationship be like. She just shuddered and pointed to Virgo and Cancer, who were having a stare down. "Virgo-sama! Cancer-sama!" He called, making them turn. She shuddered at his words making her think. Was he the bitch in the Spirit World or something? Yet, she was out of keys other than Taurus and Aquarius. She decided to summon Aquarius, knowing that she'd regret it.

Aquarius was beautiful. She kept her mermaid look, but she now carried two jars, one red the other blue. She carried the blue jar with her left hand, and that half of her body was red, with red scales, hair and iris, while the red jar was in her right hand, and that part of her body was like it was, blue scales and blue hair. The tattoo across her chest had grown, and switched colours every second, swapping between blue and red. Yet, what shocked Lucy the most was what she said.

"Lucy!" She shouted, flying towards her. Lucy braised herself for a wave of water, but nothing came. Instead, she got a warm embrace which made her eyes pop open to see Aquarius hugging her. Aquarius. Hugging her. Lucy felt shocked and Aquarius broke away to look at her with a worried expression. "Aw, honey, are you ok?" Honey? Lucy couldn't believe her ears. It was like Aquarius had changed into her older sister or something. Lucy could only nod, making her smile in relief. Then she spotted Scorpio, and her eyes shined. "Scorpio!" She cried excitedly, dropping the pots and running to him. They didn't fall however, just float behind her when she flew over to hug him.

"I thought she was a bitch to you, Lucy." Mirajane said with a confused expression.

"She was. I thought she'd be a nightmare... I guess you can't tell how they'll change..." Lucy sighed. All these different personalities were draining her. Her magic remained practically untouched, and she felt like she could summon hundreds more easily, but mentally, she was tired. The day had been long, and she hadn't slept that night, since she was crying in the circle of dead grass... She sighed for what must've been the millionth time that day and turned to her last Golden Key. The rest were now black, and all that remained was Taurus, the pervert. Would he turn worse? She decided it was time to find out. She summoned him.

When she saw him, she gasped loudly. He was no longer a bull, but a man, and the most attractive one she had ever seen. He was almost naked, apart from some cow-print shorts he wore. He dragged two huge axes, both bigger than his old one, like they weighed nothing, and flashed a smile towards Lucy that made her heart skip a beat.

"Hey, Lucy babe!" He smiled, trotting towards her. "What do you need?"

Lucy just stared at him, drool escaping from her lips. He was so her type. He had muscles on his muscles, and she felt herself just looking over his body, blushing. But she felt like she was cheating on Zeref. Wait, cheating on him? They didn't have anything special... Did they? Her mind filled with images of Zeref. He was cool, smart, powerful, handsome... She felt her heart race at him. Did she like him?

No, no. She shook her head hard, and comcentrated on the Spirit in front of her. Now that she looked at him, he wasn't as good as Zeref. She noticed how his dark hair was messy, but Zeref's was more smart. Zeref wore more clothes, so she didn't know his body. Was it muscular? Did he have any scars? Wait, why was she thinking of him? She needed to focus on her Spirits.

"Go... Somewhere..." Lucy sighed, gesturing away from her. He just smiled and made his way to flirt with Mirajane. She was done with her Golden Keys, so she decided to move onto the Silver Keys, but before she started, Zeref reappeared. Remembering her thoughts, she couldn't look at him without blushing. What was wrong with her?

Zeref smiled. The seeds were beginning to sprout. The way she looked at his, then looked away blushing was proof. Just the final tweaks, and the joining of the Iron Dragon Slayer, Water Mage and second Exceed would complete phase 1 of his plan. Phase 2 wouldn't be able to begin until another week passes.

As if on cue, another Dark Mist appeared to show two said Mages and an Exceed. Lucy looked shocked, while both Mirajane and Happy stood on guard, calling their magic to be ready for anything.

Gajeel and Juvia weren't shocked to see Mirajane and Happy with Lucy. They guessed that they chased after her after Fairy Tail rejected her, and both felt relieved that they weren't the only ones who thought that she shouldn't be alone.

"We left Fairy Tail, bunny girl." Gajeel said, making Lucy, Mirajane and Happy relax. Zeref just smiled, and prepared himself for three more 'Bonds'.

* * *

Makarov sighed alone in his office. He had finally found where Lucy was, but the location was a major problem. It was Tenrou Island, Fairy Tail's 'Holy Island', that no one were meant to be able to get to, and where they always hosted the S-Class Exam. It would take a week to get there, and he was the Master, so he couldn't just up and leave. Unless...

An idea formed in his mind. It made him smile with relief and anticipation. This way he could take all of Team Natsu with him, as well as the major people in the guild to help convince them. Running into the guild hall, he shouted to get their attention. Normally, nothing short of an earthquake would be able to pierce the noise created by the guild, but this wasn't normal. Everyone was quiet, sitting in depression and having hushed conversations.

"Everyone!" He called, getting all their attention. "The time for an S-Class Exam is upon us!"

* * *

**Wow. That went on longer that I expected. I mean, I got a major writer's block a little into it, but when I got inspiration I couldn't stop! So sorry for the wait! Please review! (Apparently R&R means Rock and Roll, but why do people keep using it? Can someone please tell me what it means?)**

**(＞人＜****;)**

**IMPORTANT: PLEASE READ!**

**Ok, so I'm not going to be able to update until the 9th of January at the very least! I'm sorry, but in-between Christmas and my English Exam on the 9th, I won't be able to write much. I may be able to update, but please don't expect anything! Sorry, but my education is very important to me! My parents'll kill me if I fail it (I won't be happy if I don't get an A), so I'll be revising hard. If it wasn't for the constant illness if missing school and hospital trips, it wouldn't be like this. So, I'm very, very sorry, but my 15 year-old brain can only do so much! So thanks for being patient (hopefully). I'm just putting this here because I hate it when people add extra chapters for notes, and I promised myself I wouldn't be one of yep those guys.**

**~Nom Nom :3**


	5. One Week

**Disclaimer: If you look at me under the right light, then close your eyes and imagine the author of Fairy Tail, I'm still not Hiro Mashima, so I don't technically own anything. Oh well, he's awesome!**

**(＞人＜****;)**

**IMPORTANT:**

**Ok, I know I said nothing until the 9th January, but I couldn't help it! I wanted to write more so badly! So I thought "Meh, the exam won't go anywhere. I'll just squeeze this in at any place possible.", so I did. Ergo, it is here.**

**Also, now rated M! Sorry, I just decided it's going to be very gory and sexy at times, so sorry. Please forgive me! I want it to be dark, and ergo it becomes so.**

**(⌒-⌒; )**

**I just remembered that I said that this, and I quote, "may sound generic". Seriously, I said that, and now that I thought about it, it isn't. So there. It is original, and that means I kept my promise. So, yay!**

**(((o(*ﾟ▽ﾟ*****)o)))**

**OMG OMG OMG! So many reviews, follows and favourites! For my story! It's like my brain exploded into tiny pieces, and I don't know where I'm going with that. So I'll just... Be happy...**

**So, I ask you all: men, women, and children (yada yada age-thingy yada yada) to please support this story. It would've been dead by now without it, so thank you! Please, review, follow and favourite (because now it's not rude to ask of that or something... I don't know...) my story! Thanks!**

**~Nom Nom :3**

**PS: I would like to thank the many people who have said suggestions about the R&R thing, and one that frequently pops up, which makes sense, is 'Read and Review', so I'll go with that one. Thanks to all the people who said so (I'm sorry, the list is long, and it's a stupid thing to dish out credit to lots of people. Sorry if that somehow offends...), and please do R&R!**

* * *

**Fifth:**

**One Week**

* * *

One week. That's all it took for Fairy Tail to meet their former nakama. That one week changed them in ways unimaginable. They were still the people they knew and came to love, but it was now like they gained extra personality, in the form of coldness, strength and intimidation. No longer were they the frail Fairy Tail members, or the strong-yet-caring members. They were now just pure evil incarnations of their friends, their family. They lost all love, respect, and even interest in their eyes, and Fairy Tail, no matter how disgusted they were at them, did not like to see them this way. It wasn't right. It wasn't them. They just... didn't care.

* * *

**One Week Ago: Fairy Tail**

_"Everyone!" Master Makarov called, drawing the whole of Fairy Tail's attention. The air was quiet, as if in morning, and it made him feel uncomfortable. It was like they were treating the people who had left like they had died. Makarov didn't like this. Everyone but a select few had just given up hope for any return, much against Fairy Tail's usual response to lost nakama. He needed to fix it soon, so he came up with the idea of directly meeting them. It could swing to either very good and all of them return home, or family fights family, own blood spilt. He just wished it wouldn't go to that. The plan was somewhat the death throws of anything that could return them. He felt like Lucy was the key, and all he needed to do was to convince her, and the rest would follow. He needed to do this. "The time for an S-Class Exam is upon us!"_

_Everyone just stared at him. The usual cheer to that announcement was gone, and all the guild just simply stared at him. Team Natsu were thinking about how inappropriate it was to do the S-Class exam, even Natsu, who was dying to become an S-Class Mage. The timing was just... Off. Yet, Makarov didn't care. He wore his serious mask, a face which he rarely used, and immediately Erza caved to him. She was, after all, a sucker for rules and orders._

_"Everyone, pay attention!" She said, loud enough for it to echo throughout the entire hall. Her voice was laced in authority, and some could see that in the corner of her eyes, there was a begging for someone to challenge her. She wanted to let off steam, and a punching bag would do wonderfully._

_"Everyone..." Makarov sighed when there was quiet. "You may think they've abandoned us, but they haven't. They just decided not to abandon one of their nakama, Lucy. It's my fault she left, so it's my fault that Happy and Mirajane, then even Gajeel, Juvia and Pantherlily followed. I..." He stopped, worried incase he cup shouldn't share the information. Because not everyone would be going, those left behind would be left out. He sighed, then decided to tell only the people who would come. "This needs to be done. So, I'll now announce the participants. This year it will be pairs, so two people will become S-Class Mages at once. Natsu and Gray." Only a small head nod from Natsu indicated that anyone actually heard him. "Lisanna and Levy." Again, only a slight shocked expression on Lisanna's face showed that he was heard. "Freed and Bickslow." No response. "Cana and Wendy." Only Wendy looking slightly scared showed that anyone heard him. "Evergreen and Elfman." No response. "Gildarts, Erza and I will accompany them for the trial. Carla, you may come, but you are the only exception. Everyone meet up here in an hour, with enough luggage for two weeks. Dismissed!"_

_No one budged until Erza glared at them, which made them all run. She could sense that Master had a plan, so she did her best to make people support it. She herself quickly ran off to her home to prepare._

_It took three hours for Fairy Tail to board their ship and set sail. Everyone remained silent, dwelling on the inappropriateness of the situation. Everyone was deep in thought. Why did he continue with the exam? They had lost four members - four extremely powerful and members, with family and friends in the guild. They all felt like the situation was a dream, that it was a nightmare for them. Unfortunately, this wasn't the case._

_Suddenly, Master Makarov stood before the members with three people behind him: Erza, Gildarts and... Laxus? People immediately jumped to the defensive, while the three Raijinshū members jumped, prepared for any order from Laxus. However, Makarov and Laxus just shook their heads, making people relax, albeit confused by the situation._

_"I know people are thinking how inappropriate this is-" Makarov started, but was interrupted by Natsu._

_"Hell yeah!"_

_"Quiet, flame brain!" Gray hissed._

_"Mind your own business, ice prick!" Natsu retorted._

_"Fire idiot!"_

_"Ice queen!"_

_"Retarded-"_

_"GRAY! NATSU!" Erza shouted angrily. "Are you two fighting?"_

_Both gulped and smiled at one another, lying through their teeth. "What? No! We're friends, like always!" They said together, acting like best friends. Erza just nodded with a smirk, which had been adopted by almost all the guild members present. People were depressed, but they were slowly getting better. Unfortunately, Makarov was soon to break this new coming adjustment._

_"I know you must be thinking how inappropriate this is." Master Makarov began again. "But this isn't an exam. I've gathered our strongest members because..." He stopped, looking grim. "We've located where Lucy is. And if what I've been told is correct, Mirajane, Happy, Gajeel, Juvia and Pantherlily are with them."_

_"Them?" Lisanna asked with a small voice. They all knew the answer, but they hoped it wouldn't be..._

_"Lucy and Zeref." He sighed deeply, and for once looked and acted his true age. "The worse thing is that all of them will be expecting us, and will be prepared. With Dark Arts Magic."_

_This statement met silence. It could be that the darkness wouldn't affect their magic, but the experience with Lucy and Aries, the Black Key, how easily she was able to end lives without caring... If the rest were like that... They couldn't save them. Even though Fairy Tail was world renown for always saving their nakama... Murder is not something that people can be saved from. With Jellal it was different, because he wasn't himself. He hadn't been able to stop himself and had been controlled, but this... Lucy was fully aware, and even smiled at the death. She willingly corrupted her Spirit, he friend, and did so with a smile._

_If the bubbly Lucy had changed so much, how would the others change? The thought made them shiver..._

* * *

"So, Fairy Tail. We meet again." Lucy smiled, but not one of warmth like she used to. It was cold and uncaring, and borderline bored.

There were seven figures atop the cliff looking down at them. All seven donned black and red clothes that looked like they had just returned from a very rich party. Every single one looked at Fairy Tail without warmth, with cold glares that were neither caring nor hating. The just... Observed. They just didn't care. Like Lucy, they all looked bored.

There was a black throne on the cliff, where Zeref sat in a black suit. He had a red shirt and handkerchief in his left chest pocket. He rested his chin on his left hand which was resting on the arm of the throne. Lucy sat across him, in a black strapless dress which had a red stripe on it, which started over her heart and wrapped around her twice before ending over her right leg. She wore black boots that disappeared under the black dress.

To the left of the throne was Juvia, in a black breasts which had only a single strap, over her right shoulder, with the dress asymmetric, stoping at her right hip and her left ankle. The hem had embodied red bands stitched into it, making the appearance of flames. Her hair was still aqua blue, but now had red highlights, making it look like it was glowing. She leaned on the edge of the throne, with Pantherlily on her shoulder, looking like he normally did, with the exception of his cold eyes.

To the right of the throne stood Mirajane. She wore a red flowing ballroom dress, which covered her feet completely. She had black gloves that reached past her elbows, and it had a single red bow on each. Around her waist was a black bow, that was tied so that the bow was large and visible. Her hair had a black trim to it, standing out to the silver hair she already had.

Also on the right of the throne, but behind Mirajane, was Gajeel, who was leaning on the back of it. He wore an identical suit to Zeref's, but his was torn at the shoulders so that his arms were bare. He looked like he was bored, and was the only one who was not looking at Fairy Tail, but looking out to sea.

Fairy Tail stood on guard. Natsu stood at the front, next to Erza and Gray. The rest of the members were slightly behind them, scattered about the rocky outcrop, all looking intently at the group on the cliff. They all remained silent, letting Team Natsu take the lead. However, they remains quiet.

"What's the matter? Cat's got your tongue, Salamander?" Lucy said, flicking her hair back, which had five separate streaks in it: silver, light blue, dark blue, brown and black. "Oh wait..." She gave another smile. "Happy is right here."

As if on cue, the blue cat sat up from her lap and looked at them. Natsu was at the front shaking with anger, and when Happy looked at him, eyes cold and unmoved, he exploded in anger and jumped towards them. He wanted to be peaceful because Lucy was... Well, Lucy, his nakama. But she just taunted him, and even Happy, his best friend, someone he grew up with, looked at him without any emotion. No fear, no sadness, not even anger. Just nothing. So he attacked without thinking, possibly the most dangerous thing he could do to them.

All Fairy Tail saw was Natsu jump at the group of seven atop the cliff, fire radiating off his entire body, when before he reached them, he got sent flying back at them. He rag-dolled into them, his left arm twisted and bent in ways impossible without it being broken. Blood oozed from the wounds, with a large gash showing bone and muscle. The bone itself had been fractured, chipped by a claw-like thing, and the flesh around it shredded, hanging off like loose paper. Natsu was screaming in pain, trying to both clutch his arm and not move it as Wendy tried to help him. Carla didn't protest to Wendy seeing the horrendous scene, but just stared at the people on the cliff, eyes wide with tears threatening to fall. Other heads turned to see who was powerful enough to push Natsu back so easily, and was shocked by the scene.

At the cliff edge, arm changed into a monstrous black demon-like claw with blood dripping from the chunks of flesh still hanging there was... Happy.

* * *

**One Week Ago: Tenrou Island**

_"It is done." Smiled Zeref, letting go of Lucy and Juvia's joined hands. He handed the plain black key with the ornate 'J' on it to Lucy to go with the ones to call for Mirajane, Happy, Gajeel and Pantherlily. Juvia smiled encouragingly to Lucy, before stepping back to where the rest were waiting._

_The bonding made their emotions heighten to one another, all linked through Lucy. Their trust, respect and overall knowledge of each other had dramatically increased, being a side affect of the 'Bonds'. They weren't wary of Zeref anymore, because of the fact that Lucy wholeheartedly trusted his, so the rest did too._

_"I'm going to get down to business." Zeref spoke up, getting all their attention. "In one week, Fairy Tail will be here, and you must prove that you are more powerful, or else they will destroy you." He turned to the cats. "First, you two. Happy and Pantherlily, yes?" He asked._

_They nodded. "Lily's fine." The brown cat stated._

_"We'll, Happy and Lily, you're both Exceeds, right?" Slightly shocked they nodded again. "Good, that means you both have Shapeshifting Magic." The pair looked confused._

_"We only have our Aera Magic." Happy stated. "Lily can sometimes enlarge himself to human-sized, but I can only use my wings."_

_Zeref sighed. "No, your magic is Shapeshifting. It may have taken the form of wings, but it's always there."_

_"How do you know this?" Gajeel asked._

_"Because originally, over 400 years ago, I created the Exceed race. It was for an..." He stopped, then corrected himself. "For company. The only thing compatible was a cat, so that's why you're original form is a cat. Yet there's one thing I can't understand..." He mused._

_"What's that?" Mirajane asked._

_"How are you two alive? All the Exceeds in Earthland were killed out of fear over 300 years ago..."_

_"I can answer that." Lucy smiled. "They came from another world, like a parallel world, called Edolas."_

_Ah, Edolas. That brought back memories for Zeref. "Anyway, the point is that the Shapeshifting Magic is within you both. It should come easy, so just try it. Your bodies should be compatible." They nodded, and he turned to Mirajane. "Mira, you're a Take-Over Mage, yes?"_

_"Yes. I use Satan Soul."_

_That made a smile crack across his face. What were the chances? "You use on of the 'Seven Hell Kings'? Do you know any more of them?" She just shook her head. "Don't fret about it. It should be powered back to 100% because of the flow of the Dark Arts Magic, compared to the measly 5% power it did have". He turned to Juvia. "And who may you be?"_

_"Juvia." She smiled at him._

_"What's your magic, Juvia?"_

_"Juvia uses Water Magic."_

_Water Magic? That was rare, and extremely powerful. "Hmm, so what do you do?" He asked._

_"Juvia controls water...?" She said, unsure of the question._

_"So nothing else?" She looked at him confused. "I mean, a skilled Water Mage can control anything with even the smallest amount of water. Earth, air, magma... The list is almost endless." Juvia nodded, with wonder in her eyes._

_Zeref thought hard. Were all Mages this dense? Their powers over things are tremendous, but they hold themselves back unconsciously, only allowing them to use little of their full power. Yet this was good for him. If these were like this, and were viewed as some of the strongest Mages in the world, the others would be easy to crush..._

_Zeref turned to the fast person and recognised the man almost instantly. "Gajeel Redfox, a Dragon Slayer. Who was your dragon?" He asked, already thinking this was too good to be true. It would be someone against Acnologia, because even Zeref himself wasn't that lucky. He couldn't be... Could he?_

_"Metalicana." Gajeel said, making Zeref almost giddy. He was that lucky! His plan would be greatly easier because of that, because of the who raised this Dragon Slayer. "Why?"_

_Zeref just shook his head. "Later, later. But first, everyone must perfect the use of their respective Dark Arts Magic."_

_It was a long week. All progressed beyond what anyone could imagine. Lucy finished her 'new' contracts with her Silver Key Spirits, the two Exceeds Happy and Lily were able to morph some of their body and hold it for about three hours, Juvia began to learn how to manipulate other things other than pure water, Gajeel had began to learn Apocalypse Dragon Slayer Magic and had mastered 'Apocalypse Dragon's Roar', and Mirajane had used her Satan Soul Take-Over Magic and showed the immense power it wielded._

_Before anyone had actually realised, it was the seventh day and the clash with Fairy Tail was hours away. Lucy sent her Rusted Key Spirits (formerly Silver Key Spirits) back to the Celestial World. Like her Black Zodiac Spirits (formerly Golden Key Spirits), they had changed in appearance and strength._

_Plue changed to a more wolf-like structure, resting on all four legs with it's orange nose gone, only leaving a snout with an orange tip. It's size almost tripled, and became the size of a normal wolf, rather than Happy's size._

_Lyra became a gothic woman with an electric guitar replacing her harp. Her usual blue dress was replaced with black pants, black shirts and black shoes, all with small, pointy metal studs in them. Her orange hair turned black with purple streaks, and covered her left eye. Se had a black leather chocker, which had chains hanging from it._

_Crux, remarkably, didn't change at all, just remained the same floating metal cross, perhaps getting bigger. Pyxis changed into a red bird with blue wings, with two large metal balls instead of eyes. It's compass on its head disappeared, leaving three large spikes popping out the top, one red, one blue and one black._

_Horologium was the one who changed the most. His clock-body was replaced with one of a small boy. He was completely normal, looking about five years old, with nothing suggesting otherwise apart from the way he talked and the large marble sundial he held in his hands._

_Once they were gone, she went to their camp. Everyone apart from Mirajane was waiting there, and none entered the large tent that was there. When she arrived, she noticed that the others looked slightly scared, and she heard squeals from inside the tent._

_"Erm... What?" Was all Lucy could manage to say, gesturing to the tent. She sat down next to Juvia, who gave her a smile. Over the last week, they'd grown incredibly close and were now best friends, better friends than she was with either Levy or Natsu. Now that there was no constant suspicion of "Lucy stealing Gray-sama", they got on really well. Juvia was also able to drop all honourifics with the small group, a great feat for her._

_"Mirajane is making clothes for us." She said. "Juvia wanted to help, but Juvia was sent out, being told it was a 'surprise'." She emphasised with her hands._

_"Gajeel?" She asked him, as he sat down on the other side of Juvia. Both Happy and Lily followed him, chatting about fish._

_"About four hours ago, she started to squeal. She's been locked inside there all day making these 'clothes' for us." He turned and looked at her. "Anyway bunny-girl, how's the progress been?" He asked. He hadn't dropped the nickname, but she was fine with it. It was like an older brother teasing his younger sister, and it was like a warmth she never had. Mirajane was like her older sister in that respect too._

_"W-What do you mean?" She said, knowing the exact reason. She begged in her mind. Please don't bring it up, please don't bring it up, please don't bring it up..._

_"With Zeref!" Juvia exclaimed, loud enough for Mirajane to hear. She squealed and came running out to hear the gossip. Said man was elsewhere, so they had privacy._

_"Mira, are you done?" Se asked, hoping to change the subject._

_"Lucy..." Mirajane glared, making her shiver._

_It had been just the night before since she slipped up, saying that she thought Zeref was attractive. The actual sentence she used contained the words 'body' and 'godly', but that wasn't important. "Nothing's happened... Yet..." She mumbled the last part, but Gajeel's Dragon Slayer hearing and Mirajane's matchmaking hearing heard it. Mira squealed yet again, and Gajeel muttered something about 'threats'._

_"Mira, clothes!" Lucy practically yelled, gaining her attention. She so couldn't handle this right now._

_"Oh yes!" She jumped up. "Follow me!" They followed her into the tent to see four amazing outfits. Three were dresses, all unique, while the last one was a suit. They all (Gajeel and Exceeds excluded, so just the women) stared at the clothes in awe. "It took me a while, but I made them!"_

_"Made them, eh?" Gajeel snorted. "That explains this." He held out his hand, and in it was the sleeve of the suit, ripped off. Mirajane stared at him, her mind blank. Then, they heard a literal cracking from her as she lost it. She trembled and gathered her magic, ready to disintegrate Gajeel. Gajeel, being the bright Dragon Slayer he was, decided to rip off the other sleeve, making her tremble more._

_"There!" He smiled, looking at his handiwork. "That's more me!" Surprisingly enough, he was right. When they all changed into their clothes, Gajeel looked like he suited the ripped clothes, better than he would with the sleeves. Mirajane was still upset, but was better after seeing it on him._

_"They're almost here."_

_They all turned to see Zeref standing there in his suit. He smiled towards them, which made Lucy blush. He was attractive and had a good personality, and that bugged her. Why did he have to be so perfect? Why couldn't he just be human like the rest of the. Sighing, she followed him to meet Fairy Tail, for what may be the last time..._

* * *

"Pyxis." Lucy summoned the red bird without her keys. It appeared on her shoulder, it's eyes reflecting the world back at them. Lucy pointed to Fairy Tail, who were crowding around the injured Natsu, trying to protect him. "Separate them."

The metal eyes began to glow, emitting a purple shimmering light from the left and a green one from the right. Fairy Tail began to separate, and the members floating. It was like invisible hands picked them up and suspended them, making them unable to move. It obviously pained Natsu, from his grunts and whimpers, which only made Lucy smile. She couldn't believe how weak they were, and she just wanted to crush them. It was clear that they had no more love towards their former nakama.

"So..." Lucy purred. "Who first?"

"Lucy, you wouldn't!" Erza shouted, earning her a glare from Lucy, but she ignored it. "You all are our family!"

"Was!" She snapped. "We were your family!"

"Juvia thinks that we need to make an example..." Juvia smiled. Lucy mirrored the smile, and she stood up off Zeref's lap and walked to the edge, Juvia next to her. "But who...? Mira~!" She sang turning around. The Take-Over Mage glided across the ground towards them, looking intently at everyone. Her eyes showed no reaction when it passed her siblings Elfman or Lisanna.

"Hmm... Hard to pick..." She thought, looking at everyone individually. Fairy Tail just stared at them, most of them cynical. They wouldn't do anything... Right?

"How about her?" Gajeel said, pointing to Erza. Lucy simply shook her head.

"No, it'd be boring if we killed her off so soon." Juvia smiled. Erza eyes widened in horror. Kill? They were planing on killing one of them, one of their own nakama? She wouldn't have believed them, but after what Lucy did with Aries towards the Rune Knights, anything was possible. Unfortunately, Natsu didn't see this.

"Yeah, right! Like you'd kill one of your nakama!" He sneered despite the pain his arm was in. Blood dripped from it, dripping to the rocky shore below them.

"Oh, really?" Lucy asked, her eyes flashing dark. It made him shiver and start to sweat. Everyone else did the same, even Erza flinched slightly. "Is that what you think? Well, we'll just have to prove you wrong." She turned to Zeref, who was just watching them amused with Gajeel doing the same next to him. "Who do you think?" She asked him.

He plundered the question. Who, out of all the Mages there, would cause both the biggest pain for Fairy Tail but also keep the key players, as Lucy wanted? He smiled, knowing the answer. It was so obvious, and would also show their pure hate to Fairy Tail. He raised his hand and pointed to one of them in the crowd. "Her."

Happy retreated with Lily while Gajeel walked over to join the three women. They were all smiling evilly, minds set on the person. "Perfect~! Why didn't I think of that? Pyxis, bring her here." She said pointing at the woman.

Lisanna began to come forwards.

"What? No!" Erza shouted, startling Fairy Tail. They didn't think they'd do it, but if Erza did... They began to get worried, especially Elfman. Makarov struggled, but even he couldn't overpower Pyxis, making everyone just watch in horror.

Lisanna landed on the ground, on her knees, looking pleadingly at Mirajane, who remained unfazed and held her sick smile. "Mira-nee..." She begged, tears spilling out her eyes. Mirajane just laughed at her.

"I call left arm!" Mirajane shouted to Juvia, making her give her a dirty look. Fairy Tail just stared at them. She calls it? What does she mean by that.

"Fine, I'll get the body." Gajeel smiled.

"So Juvia will get right arm." She sighed. "Juvia really wanted her left arm..."

They all grabbed onto the respective body parts while Lucy looked into Lisanna's eyes, putting her hands on her neck. "Please..." She begged. Lucy just smiled.

"No."

Then they pulled.

Fairy Tail watched in horror as they saw Lisanna get torn apart in front of their eyes. There were a sickening scream of pure pain followed by three lour shredding sounds. Her arms and head got ripped from her body, blood spewing out of the wounds like water, splattering the four people. Juvia and Mirajane were just laughing as they held her arms, with Juvia eying the one Mirajane was holding. Lucy grabbed ahold of a small piece of bloodied bone that was coming out the head in her hands, and threw it to Natsu. Right before I hit him, the head exploded, showering all of Fairy Tail in skull pieces, blood, brain and hair. It mainly covered Natsu, Gray and Erza, who were wide eyed and borderline on breaking down. The laughter of the four on the ground echoed hauntingly around the rest of the guild, making them either cry, throw up, or in Elfman's case, completely shutdown. Nothing could scar him more. Not the body, nor the fact that his other sister, who helped kill her was happily playing with her arms. But something did.

"Hey, no fair!" Gajeel growled. "I don't get anything!"

"Hold on, yours is coming." Lucy smiled. She kicked the limp body over, which was drenched in blood, so that it was facing upwards. Kneeling down, Lucy put her hand over Lisanna's chest. Then she slammed down, with so much force that the smashing of her ribs echoed loudly. Fresh blood splattered Lucy, but she didn't seem to care and she dug for her prize, ripping out when she found it. Gray vomited when he realised what it was. Lisanna's heart.

"It's still warm." Lucy smiled, handling it carefully in both hands. Then she did the unthinkable. She licked it. It wasn't just a small lick, but a long, wide, tongue-trail one. She licked the blood, tasting it with a smile. "Mmm..." She moaned sensually. "It's so sweet..." She smiled, than passed it to Gajeel. He nodded his thanks and proceeded to take a large bite out of it. Then another. Then another, until it was gone. He licked his lips, licking off the blood that splattered onto him.

"Now that was tasty." He smiled. Mirajane and Juvia had gotten bored of the arms and went to join Lucy and Gajeel. They kicked what remained of Lisanna's body off the cliff before looking back into Fairy Tail with the exact same smile they had previously, but this time it was more daunting with the blood splatters, and what they had just seen.

"Next~!" Mirajane sang with a smile.

* * *

**Oh. My god. I just read that last bit and MY GOD SO TWISTED! It kind of got more... Ugh-ish (to lack a better word) near the end, but on well.**

**I would like people to know that more people will die. So many more. So if you don't like that... Bah, you don't like it. Enough said. Please R&R for me!**

**~Nom Nom :3**


	6. The Heart, Body and Soul

**Disclaimer: If you look at me under the right light, then close your eyes and imagine the author of Fairy Tail, I'm still not Hiro Mashima, so I don't technically own anything. Oh well, he's awesome!**

** ───Ｏ（≧∇≦）Ｏ──── **

**The next chapter! WHEEEEE! This one... Whoop, it was fun to write. Ooh, It took so long to write... And for those who are wondering, the seven year jump is going to happen. Oh, I have so many plans for that seven years... (^ω^)**

**Also, I can't really remember the Tenrou Island Arc, so sue me if it twists things up further.**

**(((o(*ﾟ▽ﾟ*****)o)))**

**100. Reviews. Oh my jolly fish cakes. Not only that, but 25 reviews (last time I checked) for chapter 5, more than the rest, and it had been barely a few days. I do believe, because of all the happiness I got from them, that the evilness is liked, sí comprende?**

**By the by, there will be more. You know all those characters you love? Yeah, don't get too attached... This is a story about a downward spiral into evil, with no way out. So, just enjoy the ride, and review for me, and I swear I will love you forever... *wink wink***

**(＞人＜****)**

**So I ask ye: men, women, children (who should not be reading this, blah blah age limit. I can't really be arsed with it right now...) please support me like you all have done. Without you all, this story would've never sprouted into the majestic black unicorn from hell, covered in the blood of pixies... That kinda went away from me. Just... Review, favourite and follow, m'kay?**

**~Nom Nom :3**

**PS: We all have a little sadist inside us all... Don't we? (o^^o)**

**PSS: What kind of face is (o^^o)? Is it a squirrel? I want to say raccoon, but that'd be stupid...**

* * *

**Sixth:**

**The Heart, Body and Soul**

* * *

"Next~!" Mirajane sang with a smile.

It was sickening to Fairy Tail. The four of them, Gajeel, Lucy, Mirajane and Juvia were covered in splatters of blood. It dotted around their faces, stained their clothes and soaked their arms in the red blood of Lisanna. Their faces held no remorse, no regret for their actions, their eyes showed only darkness. Lucy's lips were curled upwards at the edges, Gajeel wore a smirk, and Mirajane and Juvia both were grinning madly. The looked insane, their magic power overwhelming, and that struck fear in all of Fairy Tail, including Gildarts and Makarov.

"What, no volunteers?" Lucy smiled, a soft and beautiful smile that they were all familiar with, but it only caused more fear. They hadn't changed, they weren't possessed, they were in complete control. They just didn't care.

Zeref stood up and walked to the four of them, the to Exceeds on either shoulder. He was the only one that wasn't covered in any blood whatsoever, but it did nothing for Fairy Tail's nerves. The magic power that Lucy, Gajeel, Juvia and Mirajane (also Lily and Happy to a point) dwarfed the likes of Erza and Laxus, even rivalling the power of Makarov, but Zeref's power exceeded even that. It was dark and evil, and was endless, a bottomless pit.

"What about my turn?" He asked Lucy, leaning in close to her ear. It made her spin around, slightly startled, with a dangerous glint in her eyes.

"It'll come soon. I've gotten a great idea." She grinned, loosing no composure. She turned back around and glared directly at the floating Mages. Wendy caught her eye, and she licked her lips slowly. Carla noticed this, her eyes wide.

"NO!" The white cat screamed. She wouldn't have been as worried as she was because, it was Lucy, but she had saw what they were capable of. Happy severely hurting Natsu, his father/best friend. Mirajane gleefully killing her own sister without a hint of remorse. Killing a child... That wouldn't be hard to do after that. "SHE'S JUST A CHILD!" She roared, her voice cracking, betraying her forever calm and cold mask.

"What...?" Erza croaked, her voice weak. "Wendy?" Her words sparked Fairy Tail's protests.

"She's just a child!" Evergreen pleaded.

"Take me instead!" Makarov shouted.

"Please don't hurt her!" Cana cried.

"QUIET!" Lucy roared, effectively shutting them up. She spoke again once there was silence. "That's better. I wanted to crush you all, but it appears that only Elfman has been crushed." She smiled sadly to Wendy. "You're the only one I don't want to hurt, Wendy, but..."

Zeref watched her hesitate. No, she wasn't fully corrupted yet, and this Wendy girl could be the rehabilitation she needs to stop. He needed to act. Bending in close, he whispered something into her ear. She blushed at the closeness, but listened and slowly, a sick and cruel smile appeared on her face.

"Pyxis..." She said, pointing to both Wendy and Carla , and they began to slowly come to the group. Carla screamed and begged, her eyes spilling with tears, while Wendy shook silently. Fairy Tail struggled against their containment in vain. They could only watch.

"Horologium." She called, and a young boy stepped out to meet her. He carried the marble sundial like it was nothing, and he ran like a little child to Lucy.

"Lucy-nee-sama." He bowed, making Lucy smile. Mirajane and Juvia squealed in delight at the young child and ran over to him to praise him, oblivious to the looks Fairy Tail was sending them. "How can I help?"

Wendy was shaking with loud sobs racking off her. Lucy game a cocky smirk, that was as deep as her skin, and bent over. She whispered something in the small girl's ear, causing her to stop crying. She looked up, startled, her face fearful.

"Have a nice trip." Lucy grinned viciously, before snapping her fingers. A dark mist wrapped around Wendy, slithering up her body from the ground, oozing out from unseen cracks. Once Wendy could be seen no more, the mist dispersed, leaving nothing behind. Wendy was gone, without a trace.

"I had a soft spot for the girl." Lucy told Carla. "I didn't want to let her suffer. And you, young Exceed..." Her face twisted further. "I have a special plan for you. Horologium!" On the call of his name, the small child rushed from the two Mages that were obsessing over him, to his master's side.

"Yes, Lucy-nee-sama?" He asked politely.

"Take her there." She turned to the two Exceeds on Zeref's shoulders. "You two, go with them. Lets see how long it takes..." The two cats nodded, and Horologium placed his marble sundial down. He moved the seemingly immovable dial to the 'III' on the surface, and he disappeared, with the sundial and three Exceeds.

Lucy sighed. "I'm bored now."

The words made everyone, even her allies freeze. Gajeel, Juvia and Mirajane looked at her, alarmed, while Zeref gulped nervously. When Lucy gets bored, it's something that's harsh on everyone. Fairy Tail, noticing the reaction from the people around Lucy, took this as a sign that something bad was going to happen.

She looked up at Zeref, eyes averting his. "How long until they come?" She asked him.

Zeref's surprise was easily dispersed. So she knew they were coming, like he did. What else would he expect from the one to be with him? "Soon." He replied. "Soon."

She nodded and turned to her three friends. "Pick one. No killing, just maim them. If they do happen to die... Well, they're dead. Just try not to kill any key players." The three nodded gleefully, and Pyxis flew off Lucy's shoulder and onto Gajeel's. Lucy retreated backwards to sit on the throne with Zeref, to watch the coming events.

It was now that Fairy Tail woke from their trance. It fully hit them: Lisanna was dead. So was Wendy. Carla had been takes away by the cats to be most likely tortured, and some of them were going to be tortured too. Yet, no matter how much they struggled, the red bird called Pyxis had complete control over them, so all they could do was wait... That key was on of Lucy's weakest so how strong would her strongest be?

Mirajane was the first to pick. She knew instantly who she wanted. Evergreen. This shocked Elfman out of his unique trance of depression to struggle furiously, but to no avail. I was only able to watch, and Mirajane made it so Pyxis brought Evergreen right in front of him, so he could watch every minute.

Juvia was next. Her eyes washed over them all, making them feel violated and dirty until they closed in on Gray, who gulped nervously. "Gray-chan~..." She sang, her once overly admiration for him replaced with a mocking voice. "Don't worry." She laughed. "Juvia is saving you for last. But first, watch." She commanded, and pointed to Cana, who began to come forward.

Finally it was Gajeel's turn to pick, and like Mirajane, he knew exactly who to pick. "Levy." He said gruffly, making her shiver and struggle as she began to follow the path Cana and Evergreen followed. Fairy Tail could only watch them.

What they witnessed that day would never escape their minds for as long as they lived. It had Fairy Tail being thankful that Lisanna died quickly and wasn't abused like that. The screams etched in their heads, the images burned into their memories. They didn't see their former nakama anymore, they saw cruel, soulless monsters. They saw hell.

Evergreen had half the skin on her face peeled off on the right side, with a large dirty gash down her left cheek. Her left hand had been crushed, with parts twisted in unrecognisable heaps, white bone and red blood everywhere. She had a few other cuts and bruises, but that's all that Mirajane could do before the interruption.

Cana was attacked with black water by Juvia. Deep and fatal wounds were inflicted upon he all over her body, but Juvia healed it with magic before she could die, leaving only intense pain and big, ugly scars all over Cana's body.

Levy was unscathed everywhere but in her right arm, which was swelling and turning an ugly black and blue colour. Gajeel had sent tiny pieces of black metal into her arm and made them expand instantly when they had been imbedded on the inside of her bones. Naturally, said bones shattered from the magic, but her skin remained unpierced.

It was only after about five minutes when Lucy stopped them. Some from Fairy Tail saw it as a blessing that their comrades had been saved from torture, but were quickly overcame by fear and dread of what was to come. In the distance, a large black airship with what looked like three different segments. The middle of the three had a red logo on it, a red thorny heart, and the section looked like a ship, while the two identical segments on either side looked like white bird heads. It stayed in flight due to an extremely large and powerful black and red magic circles.

"Grimoire Heart." Makarov whispered, making Fairy Tail freeze. That was Grimoire Heart, one of the three dark guilds in the Balam Alliance. Oración Seis was one such guild, and even though they took them down, they had much more power, and weren't trapped by Lucy. As if she heard the collective thought, she smiled.

"Don't worry, you'll have a fighting chance." She purred. A black mist formed at all of their feet, which slowly worked it's way up. Right before they disappeared they heard a click come from Lucy, and all of a sudden they were released from the Gravitational Magic, heading straight for the rock outcrop below. The three tortured women collapsed due to their only support disappearing, and tumbled off the cliff after them.

* * *

Lucy appeared in the middle of the airship, surprising all the members of Grimoire Heart present. A black haired woman was first to react and charged forwards to attack, only to be stopped by a very old man.

"Don't." He commanded. "Her magic is in sync with Zeref's."

Immediately, all hostility died down, with many members bowing. The old man bowed himself, and Lucy guessed that he was the leader of the somewhat feeble guild.

"I'm here as a messenger." She simply said. "I'm here to see if you're worthy."

"Worthy of what?" The woman asked.

"Hush, Ultear." The man commanded. "I'm sorry." He bowed, making Lucy think that he was a pushover.

"No, it's ok." She said awkwardly. "I'm here to see if you are worthy to meet Zeref, of course!"

The old man stiffened. "What do you mean 'worthy'?"

"Well, you see, you're Grimoire Heart, one of the Balam Alliance members, correct, old man?" She questioned.

"Hades!" Ultear hissed, earning a glare from Hades and an interested look from Lucy. She liked her.

Lucy began to walk slowly around the room, around each member like she was the master. "Whatever." She waved off. "Anyway, you may be one of the top, but that's from fear. How about action? Power? That I don't know." Turning, she pointed to the island through the glass window. "On the island is a legal guild. If you crush them, you'll get to meet Zeref."

"Deal." Hades agreed instantly, earning a evil look from Lucy.

"Ah, how inexperienced in the world..." She sighed dramatically. "Agreeing to the deal before hearing the handicaps."

"Wait, handicaps?" Ultear's eyes narrowed.

"Yes. In your current condition against their condition, you'd win easily." She smiled evilly again. "Where would the fun be in that?" She began walking again. "So, handicap number one."

She clicked her fingers, and two of the guild members literally exploded. Blood, bone and other parts scattered everywhere, covering the once clean glass in deep, red blood. Lucy, amazingly, remained completely free from anything, even though Hades was covered and he was standing further away.

"Handicap number two." She said before clicking her fingers yet again. This time, no one died, but they all each felt excruciating pain at different points in their bodies. All of the members were affected (Hades the only acceptation), and gained anything from simple scratches to completely useless limbs. Ultear's left arm broke, and she couldn't fix it with her magic, surprising her. Lucy was on a whole other level.

"Don't worry, if you are as good as your reputation says, you'll do fine. Hey, this is all your fault anyway. If you hadn't taken so long to get here, I wouldn't have been bored and used Fairy Tail as a toys." She smiled. "Now, handicap number three. Better brace yourselves." She warned, before clicking her fingers and disappearing into a black mist.

On the sound of the third click, the airship suffered major magic failure and began to plummeting towards the island.

* * *

Lucy appeared before her friends in a black mist. They were expecting her to be with them before, yet she disappeared, and now had appeared after a few minutes. Zeref knew exactly what she did, and so did the rest when they heard the loud crash from the other end of the island, followed by an explosion and large pieces of black metal flying through the air.

They all looked at her, Gajeel smirking, Juvia laughing, Mirajane rubbing her hands together excitedly and Zeref knowingly looking into Lucy's eyes.

"Now the fun can begin." She smiled. Zeref walked over to her and offered her iphis arm, like a man would in a ball. She graciously accepted it, and Gajeel did the same to Mirajane and Juvia, who locked onto either arm. Slowly, the five of them walked to the place where loud screaming, shouts and general magic blasts could be heard.

Fairy Tail didn't get even a moment of rest. As soon as the five left, it was only a matter of minutes before the large airship in the distance began to plummet towards them. Makarov and Gildarts barely had enough time to form a magic shield by pooling their magic together, draining almost all their magical power for the sudden summon. When the ship hit the shield, it exploded, blasting all of Fairy Tail backwards into the rocky cliff-face behind them.

Dazed, they slowly got up to meet eight people. The most notable of the group was an old man, a goat and Ultear, a former Magic Council member. Yet, the whole group appeared to be no worse for wear than them, with many sporting scratches, gashes, and some even holding limp arms that looked like they had been shattered.

For a moment, it was a stare-down. Unknown to the other, each side dwelled on the members they lost. Grimoire Heart may be a Dark Guild, but they survived for so long by being a family, a thing most Dark Guilds neglected on doing. Yet, both sides refused to morn their fallen comrades... Yet, and decided to stare down the other.

Master Makarov was the first to speak. "Purehito..." He muttered, voice filled with shock.

"Ah, Makarov." Hades smiled sinisterly. "So you were the one that the Dark Queen wanted us to crush. A pity that it is Fairy Tail, but this is for Zeref."

"I can't believe this..." Makarov muttered. "You're the leader of Grimoire Heart? Trainer of the Seven Kin of Purgatory?"

"Yes. Now we will kill you all."

With that, both sides began to fight.

It was an even fight. Too even. Hades stood back, letting his children fight, and watched that, because of their injuries, everyone was evenly matched, neither gaining the upper hand. Magic was flying everywhere, attacks ricocheting off the ground and cliff. Shouts and screams of pain called from their mouthed when one side caught a lucky break. Yet, no one fell, no one got pushed back. They were on par with one another.

Laxus was sent flying backwards after someone got in a good hit, but instead of colliding with the cliff, he hit something else instead. Two people, yet they didn't move an inch, so he collapsed to the floor and turned around to growl at the weaklings that decided to sit out of the fight, and promptly froze.

There was a woman wore an black business suit with a white undershirt and a short skirt, with long, knee-high dark brown leather boots, and her white shirt was unbuttoned enough so a red bra could be seen. Chains were around her waist, acting like a belt, and she had pink hair hair which had a black hairband with two red horns coming from either side in it. On her hand she was swinging a long metal chain.

Next to her stood a man wearing black boots and jeans with chains hanging off them. His chest was bare with a black tribal tattoo spanning his stomach, arms and, from what Laxus guessed, his back. He had two knuckle dusters, one on each hand, which shined in golden magic. He had black hair that spiked up, with three piercings in either ear, one in his mouth and one in his left eyebrow. Both had eyes that were red and black, looking like possessed demons, but that wasn't what sent a shiver down his spine. It was the fact that he recognised them.

"Loke, Virgo..." He said, afraid for the first time in his life. It was Lucy's spirits, and two of her strongest ones to top it off. With her weakest one she was able to immobilise the whole guild easily, so with two of her strongest ones... He shuddered and crawled away, not caring how it must've looked.

Laxus backed away into Gray's foot, who began to string a large amount of curses together, yet stopped dead when he saw the two spirits. They were walking slowly to them, power and determination radiating off them. Thankfully Gray had more sense than Laxus and found his voice.

"Loke! Virgo!" He shouted, attempting to warn his guild mates. It worked well, too well, and all of Fairy Tail stopped dead to see the two spirits snake their way through the now half-silent battle field. Stupidly, one of the Grimoire Heart members tried to attack them, but that only made Virgo smile sadistically.

"Ah, this idiot thinks he can stand up to us, onii-sama." She said flicking her wrist at the blond haired man. Instantly, chains cracked through the ground, wrapping around the man tightly, so he was immobile. "Such a pity hime said to just get the key without killing people."

Loke, on the other hand, looked incredibly bored. "Let's just hurry up. I want to hurry back to Ari-chan."

The two stopped in front of the goat, Virgo grinning madly while Loke just sighed. "Lets get this over with."

At an inhuman speed, Loke picked up the goat with one hand and with his index finger on his other hand, slit its neck, letting blood flow freely from the wound, drenching him. Then, with the same finger, he plunged it into the chest of the goat, where the heart was, and pulled at something small. As soon as he did that, he dropped the lifeless body, which has now transformed into a person with a black afro.

Loke turned and walked away, followed by Virgo, who had used her magic to stop all the movement from the people around them. Both walked away, jumping up the cliff like it was nothing, and disappeared into the forest. Only after they had gone did the chains holding everyone disappear.

Time stood still for a moment, but it stretched on for Fairy Tail. Everyone just stared, frozen for what felt like eons, until the fighting broke out again. Even though they had less people, Grimoire Heart came back stronger and fought with more power. This was when the first Fairies fell. Blood spilled from their wounds, and they fell lifeless to the ground. This only made Fairy Tail fight back, with much more power.

It was Grimoire Heart's turn to fall, and they all did. One by one, they all fell, some dead, others unconscious or unable to fight anymore. All who remained were Hades, Ultear and a small girl with pink hair, who Ultear had been trying to protect, and reminded Fairy Tail of Wendy, making them unable to hurt her.

"Looks like I'll need to join the fight now." Hades smiled, before taking a step. However, before he could do anything, he was interrupted by a loud roar from above. Everyone looked, fearful, to see a dragon, as black as night, flying in from the distance.

"I guess you can see Acnologia." A male voice stated. They all looked down to see five people. They all recognised two of them: Lucy and Zeref, while only Fairy Tail recognised Gajeel, Mirajane and Juvia. The way they walked was like they were entering a ballroom, not a bloodstained battle field, as they floated across the ground.

"In thirty seconds, everyone will be dead." Lucy said, then turned to Ultear. "But you, I like you. We'll spare you if you join us."

Ultear was startled, but quickly answered. Thirty seconds wasn't enough time, and Fairy Tail were resigned to their fate. It wasn't like most of them had anyone to live for now, anyway.

"Only if Meredy can come with me." She answered. Lucy looked at the small girl and nodded. Zeref smiled and clapped his hands. Black mist wrapped around the seven of them, and they all disappeared into nothing.

It was all hopeless. The black dragon Acnologia reached the island, and a large amount of magic power gathered in his mouth. Everyone was going to die. No one could stop it. Then what would happen? Who would be next? The Magic Council? Mages? People who can't defend themselves?

Suddenly, Fairy Tail realised they couldn't die, at least not yet. They needed to put an end to their former nakama. They realised that they can't save them anymore, but they were still their responsibility, so they needed to end them. Kill them. They needed to survive so they can put things right.

Pulling together, they grabbed one another's hands, and began to pool their magic together. Yet it wasn't enough, there wasn't enough time. Makarov realised this. And there was nothing he could do...

**How far are you willing to go?**

The voice echoed softly in his head, and the image of a small girl with long blonde hair appeared before him. She wore and old dress, one you wouldn't find anywhere but a museum, and she was smiling sweetly to him.

**What will you do for Fairy Tail, for you children?** She asked him.

_Anything. _He begged._ Just save them._

She smiled. **I'm glad that the guild has became such a great place, third. Your sacrifice won't be in vain.**

With that, Makarov's body began to fade away, along with all his magic. He smiled knowingly, and the rest of Fairy Tail watched him on horror as he disappeared before them. "Survive..." Was all he said before he completely faded. His essence became a shield around the island, and Acnologia used its dark magic to push it deep into the sea.

* * *

"Fuck!" Lucy scowled as she saw Fairy Tail disappear beneath the waves. This was against her plan. They were meant to die.

Yet, it was exactly how Zeref wanted it to be. They will come back, after some time, and he needed just that. He was counting on the first master of Fairy Tail, Mavis to do that. Now his plan was in full effect, and he needs to have a few things done before their return...

Like conceive an heir...

* * *

**Ok, don't tell me didn't see it coming about the heir part. I mean, duh!**

**Anyway, I'm so so so so so so so so sorry! I got so much writers block you wouldn't believe it! Wah... So sorry... Now, before I leave, I have some questions for you to think about:**

**Who in Fairy Tail died during the fight?**

**What will happen over the seven years?**

**Who else will join Lucy and Zeref?**

**Anyway, thanks for reading! Please review for me, my lovely readers! I will love you all forever and ever until the moon turns into a blue whale!**

**~Nom Nom :3**


	7. The Job Request

**Disclaimer: If you look at me under the right light, then close your eyes and imagine the author of Fairy Tail, I'm still not Hiro Mashima, so I don't technically own anything. Oh well, he's awesome!**

**(((o(*ﾟ▽ﾟ*****)o)))**

**And now the chapter you've all been waiting for... The next one! Yay! Another freshly toasted bread out of the oven! Smell the deliciousness of it! Smell it! Yeah, another thing that got away from me...**

**(＞人＜****;)**

**IMPORTANT:**

**Ok, I really want to apologise for the über late update. Believe me, your all laugh at how unlucky I've been. At first, I rewrote this three times. First time I lost it, second time it turned very... Disturbing... And third time I had an epic idea. So before the fourth rewrite, I went to hospital (again) to see if they FINALLY found out what was wrong with me, and I got some bad news. It was a maybe, that they need to run more tests, but they said I probably had another lifelong disease, not majorly life threatening. For crying out loud, I'm only 15 years old, I shouldn't be dealing with this... So... Meh, that's why.**

**ALSO:**

**In the manga it says 1 day in the Spirit World is equivalent to 3 months in Earthland. I assume that it means 12 hours (because they obviously didn't spend a whole 24 hours partying) so in this 1 day in the Spirit World = 6 months in Earthland.**

** *:.｡****. o(≧▽≦)o .｡****.:* **

**Oh. My. Flaming monkey butts. Over 125 followers. Over 100 favourites. I think I had a heart attack. So as a thank you, there's a party and you're all invited (please note that there is no party, and I'm only distracting you to steal your wallet).**

**(((o(*ﾟ▽ﾟ*****)o)))**

**Now, this chapter includes...**

**ZERCY!**

**(´･****Д･****)」**

**So again, I plea to ye: the finest sirs, the fairest maidens, and the little brats that call themselves children (just joking, but seriously, you shouldn't be reading this) to review, favourite and follow this story. Without all the support it's had, it would be left in a cold heap of dead fish on the floor.**

**~Nom Nom :3**

**PS: I would love to say that I'm high on drugs so that's why it sounds so stupid, but I don't do drugs. So I can't. Ergo I didn't. The end. Goodbye.**

* * *

**My Dark Queen - Part II : The Seven Years of Darkness**

* * *

**Seventh:**

**The Job Request**

* * *

**Year 0 Day 0**

Lucy bit her thumb. She had just watched her old nakama disappear, protected by the black dragon. And she knew what Fairy Tail was like. They were like rats, always surviving, always there to annoy people and just be in the way. The magic they used was old and powerful, but at a cost. She knew that they had been removed from existence, as she was unable to sense their magic.

"Fuck!" She scowled, looking out to the sea. The six of them were on the dragon's back, as it was flying away, presumably to the mainland.

After a moment of watching Lucy, Zeref clapped his hands, and sat down on a black chair he summoned with his magic. He ignored the world around him, his mind deep in thought for a plan. Yes he wanted an heir, and Lucy was the only other Mage in existence who could bear him a child, but that didn't mean she would. His emotion-manipulating magic could only go so far, and the more he used it on people, the more they became immune - an irritating drawback - and she would practically unfazed by it by now. He hoped that the seeds he planted were enough, because he...

Because what?

He felt funny. When he though about the fact that Lucy might never be his, his bod reacted violently. His heart sped up, his hands gripped the arms of his chair, and his teeth clenched. He felt like killing someone, but why? Just of the thought that Lucy might never be his? What kind of logic was that?

Wait, since when did Lucy need to be his?

What was wrong with him? He was Zeref, the darkest, evilest and most cruelest Mage in history, so why did she affect him like this? Was he...

He shook his head. No he was Zeref, he would never feel that... He looked over at Lucy, and gulped, his throat suddenly incredibly dry, and increasingly aware of his body. He would never feel that...

Right?

* * *

**Year 0 Day 4**

Acnologia landed on the mainland shore. Lucy was glad to finally be able to get of the dragon's scaled back and stand on dry land. Before Zeref stopped talking to her, he was insistent on riding the dragon the whole way, not just teleporting away to Fiore. The entire ride wasn't pleasant, with Lucy being forced to eat, sleep, dress and even bathe on the dragon (experiences that she would safely say she wouldn't do again), so she was looking forward to a decent sleep without the wind howling around her ears (because dragons didn't need to sleep, or eat, or even rest)...

Or she would've been if she wasn't so damnright nervous about Zeref. They hadn't spoken in four days (well, three and a bit, but still...) and whenever she tried, they were brought apart by Juvia, Mirajane or Gajeel. Now, she had had enough, and was going to confront him. It may have just been a few days, but it had felt much longer to not talk to the one she loved.

Yes, she loved him. She didn't know when she started doing so, maybe when they first met, with him appearing when she most needed someone. Or maybe it was when she finally turned her back on Fairy Tail and her old love. Or when he brought Mirajane and Happy with him to keep them company. Or maybe when he... There were so many times when she could've, she was surprised that she only fell in love with him the one time.

So instead of talking to him, she talked to the new additions Ultear and Meredy. Meredy was quiet and wary, but that only lasted a few minutes until Mirajane broke the shell faster than anyone could say 'huh'. Ultear, on the other hand, sat and planned with Lucy. They had matching personalities, right down to the desire to humiliate people, so they bonded instantly, and found the perfect plan. But she still couldn't stop worrying about Zeref, so she decided that it was time to act.

It was now or... Later. She turned around, looking for said man, but being rewarded with Gajeel, who was grinning sadistically.

"H-Hey..." She greeted him warily. His smile was making her feel really uncomfortable.

"Hey, bunny girl, Z wanted me to give you this." He said, thrusting a piece of paper into her hand. She sighed at the nicknames. You'd think Gajeel was allergic to saying other people's names.

"Thanks, scrap metal." She said rolling her eyes, earning a small chuckle from Gajeel before he teleported away in a black mist. She knew exactly where he teleported to, a small town about three miles away, and he was with Zeref. Side effects from the bonding, she now knew wherever they were, and they can borrow each others magic in small amounts. Thus the teleporting ability.

Sighing, she opened the small letter. It was on a piece of parchment, making Lucy snort. She knew Zeref was old, but he had heard of paper right? Then she imagined him writing this with a feather - no, a quill... She shook her head of the ridiculous image and read the letter:

_Lucy,_

_Meet me at Shark-tooth bay in two days, at seven._

_Zeref_

_PS - Mira says 'dress to impress'_

Lucy snorted in laughter. The last line was obviously scrawled in by Mirajane, the elegant and cursive handwriting the polar-opposite to Zeref's untidy scrawl. You'd think a few hundred years of living would neaten up his handwriting...

Still smiling, she folded up the parchment in half and shoved it into her pocket. This was why he was avoiding her, so he could ask her out on a date? Wait, a date? With Zeref? Her mind went into overboard. What should she wear? What colour? How should she do her hair? Her makeup? Through all her panic, one work silenced her, and made her relax from the thought.

Mirajane.

Smiling, she teleported herself to the said Mage. She was with Juvia in a flower shop, admiring the blood-red roses. The two noticed her as she walked in, stepping over the bound-and-gagged young seller. When she raised her eyebrow, the duo just giggled.

"For later!" Mira smiled to her, before jumping up onto the shop counter and sitting down on it, crossing her legs in a seductive manner. If any man saw the way she was sitting, they'd hit on her first chance.

"So, Zeref asked me out... I think." Lucy watched them share a knowing look. "But you knew that already. But that's not why I'm here." She flicked her hair over her shoulder. "I have no clue on what to wear. Or anything else."

Mirajane's eyes sparkled ominously. "You mean we get free reign?"

"Y-Yes?" It came out more like a question.

She regretted it instantly.

* * *

**Year 0 Day 6**

Lucy stumbled onto the bay. For the past two days, Juvia and Mirajane had been fawning over her none stop, making sure that everything about her was perfect. Currently, she wore a black strapless dress that wrapped tightly around her body, which had a deep silver fringe, coming off her knees and resting just above the ground, making the dress look like a miniature ball gown. The dress has red stones stitched into the weaves of the fabric, making sunlight glisten off the jewels and give a bloody-red aura around her. She had various pieces of jewellery on her person: a small silver necklace with a diamond crescent moon pendent, twin silver earrings in crescent moon shape, and a single silver hair stick, which held her hair in a ponytail down her right shoulder. Its end was in the shape of a crescent moon, like the rest of her jewellery.

All in all, the things that Lucy was wearing could easily finance her to re-buy her family's estate.

Her years at the Heartfilia manor did not fail her, she elegantly glided across the sand in her high heals (a feat that took years to master, especially when her father had an eye on a prince from Desierto, a pudgy, short man that always smelled of cheese) looking for Zeref.

It was surprisingly difficult to locate the dark Mage. The bay was empty, and all she could see was golden sand and the amazing sunset, which made her heart speed up. She sat down on the sand and faced the sunset. Now all she needed was Zeref, and it'd be a perfect first date.

As if on cue, Zeref appeared beside her out of the black mist. He was wearing a black designer suit, with a white undershirt, which was unbuttoned, revealing his body. His suit and shirt were both torn and singed, with large splatters of other people's blood on it. Multiple people, Lucy could tell, by the scent. That surprised her. Somehow, she had developed a stronger sense of smell and could smell not only the different blood, but she could smell what they looked like. There were a dozen, all big ugly people that overestimate themselves.

He sat down beside her, and both remained silent. It was an enjoyable silence, both content on watching the sunset, but Lucy knew she couldn't dance around the issue. So she went against everything she learned from both the Heartfilia manor, but also Mirajane (she taught EXACTLY what she learned at her manor, right down to the small details. When Lucy asked, Mirajane just shrugged and said that she "wrote the book on elegance").

"Do you want me?"

Lucy silently cursed herself at her idiocy. It sounded incredibly childish and spoilt, probably why it was advised against, and just completely cheesy. It made her cheeks burn, but she remained silent, looking at her lap, and she waited for his reply.

Zeref, on the other hand, smiled when he saw his Lucy blush at her words. Yes, his Lucy. It took two days and over three thousand lives in Bosco, but he finally came to terms that he loved her. He wasn't supposed to love her, only use her to get his heir, but he couldn't help it. He had fallen in love with her. And what was stopping him? He could love her, he needed to have sex with her anyway, why not enjoy it and make it last? For the first time in his 400+ year old life, he felt something other than the pain and anger of revenge. He felt love.

"Lucy..." He said, sounding condescending on purpose, making her tense. "You're a beautiful girl. You're smart, funny, sexy, honest, powerful, strong, loyal and fun. I do want you..." He trailed off on purpose, enjoying teasing her.

"But...?" Lucy said solemnly, the exact word he wanted her to say.

"But?" He echoed, feinting ignorance.

"Just tell me why you won't!" She shouted, turning to look at him. Her eyes were filled with tears, and when they met his laughing eyes, she realised what he meant.

"You JERK!" She screamed, and motioned to punch him. He flinched and closed his eyes, and was met not by a fist, but a pair of soft lips on his. He opened his eyes just in time to see Lucy moving away from him, her cheeks bright red, matching his.

He smiled and leaned in again, their lips touching once more. It was gently, and Zeref used the very tip of his tongue to glide across the opening of her lips, and when she opened them, he just continued to trace the edges of her lips. After he had made a full circle, he pushed his tongue deeper into her mouth until the tip touched the tip of her tongue. A spark passed between them, and all rationality flew out the window. They wanted - no, they needed each other. The want, the need... It consumed them. Their tongues fought an insane battle of dominance, twisting, turning and rubbing every single bit of the others mouth. It was the hardest battle either have ever had.

Yet, as soon as they started, they broke apart with force. Both jumped back away from one another, creating a space of about two meters between them.

"Did... Did you feel that...?" Lucy whispered to him, and he nodded. What she meant was the magic between them. Somehow, them kissing created some magic between them, but nothing like either had ever felt. It was powerful, but not dark nor normal magic.

It was insanity.

The magic was crazy, untamed, and... New. Completely new and powerful, like The One Magic. He had never felt that before, but he knew that it must've felt something like that. It scared him, a hard feat to do, but it also enticed him. For such power to appear before him... His lust for power began to grow again. But it was not alone. The lust, the need he felt for Lucy, it remained. She looked much more appealing to him (not that she wasn't to begin with) and he felt his cheeks burn.

Lucy felt... Different. She felt the insane magic grow between them, but when they broke apart, it drained straight from her in an instant. But it changed her. She felt her magic scream at the separation as it tried to get to it, as if it was a small child reaching for its mother. She took another look at Zeref and suddenly he looked more manly (she mentally scoffed at the fact that he could've looked more many then he did). Even the blood didn't put her off, no, it turned her on.

But before anything could happen, Zeref disappeared, making her blink. Then it hit her.

Was she just rejected?

* * *

**Year 0 Day 12**

Juvia and Gajeel stood in front of Zeref. The were worried about Lucy because, last they saw her, she was angry and on a mission. All she said was she needed to release some stress, and took off, hiding herself from being followed. That was almost half a week ago.

Both of them were frustrated with him. The attraction was obvious. It only took Gajeel and Juvia a grand total of three seconds to notice it. But for them, it took longer. Lucy had just realised it, while Zeref was yet to get there. Because of this, Juvia was pissed and wanted to slap Zeref, but only Gajeel's presence was stopping that, even though he wanted to do the exact same thing.

"Yes?" Juvia said, smiling an obviously fake smile. Zeref noticed this, but didn't pry.

"Well, I've got a job for you two." He said. "Something important."

Both listened to the Mage intently. The more he explained, the more shocked the two got. Once he was done, Juvia's was staring at him like he told her to strip, and Gajeel was grinning like a maniac.

"Well I've gotta say." Gajeel laughed. "I'm glad we ain't following a pussy!"

"Juvia is shocked." She said. "This is indeed a daring plan." She smirked, an evil gleam in her eyes. "We will do this... For a price." She grabbed the tie of the suit Zeref was wearing and dragged him close, so that their faces were close, their noses almost touching.

"Don't hurt Lucy again." She hissed, before storming off, Gajeel hot on her heels.

Zeref blinked, them rubbed his sore neck. The water girl had some strength in those small, rather deceiving arms. He then sighed. What did she mean, 'Don't hurt Lucy again'? He had already hurt her? His heart ached at the thought, making him confused. What was wrong with him?

He shook his head. That girl was very confusing, and would be the death of him.

* * *

**Year 0 Day 13**

Mirajane tapped her heel impatiently on the floor. She was angry - no, she was furious. For one week - for seven whole days - she had heard absolutely nothing. Last week, she had planned Lucy's date with Zeref absolutely perfectly, right down to forcing Gajeel to clear the bay of everyone present, and putting Lucy in the finest clothes money could by. Yet according to Lucy, who came back depressed, they kissed but he rejected her. And since then, she hadn't seen Lucy for five days, and Zeref for the whole week.

"Mirajane-san." Ultear said from behind her. Damn, she lost herself in her thoughts again. Putting her face to the perfect smile that she had perfected many years ago, she turned to her.

"Yes?"

"The mission request sent by the Lalique Family has been sent to a guild of Mages, Mirajane-san." Meredy said in a small voice. "A small guild called Sabertooth."

Sabertooth... The name was familiar. It was the name of a guild that declared to be Fairy Tail's rival over 10 years ago, but sometime in those ten years they disappeared under the folds. They didn't really have anyone spectacular, but rumours said that they had recruited a few extremely powerful Mages. Their prices weren't much, so that's probably why they were chosen by the Lalique Family, who she *cough* borrowed *cough* the clothes from.

"Meredy, it's just Mira." She smiled. "You too Ultear. We're family now. Anyway, what time will they arrive?"

"It will take them about two months to get to our location, presuming they don't travel by train. By train, it will be about nine days when it is accepted. That will take about a week though."

Mirajane thought hard. That was a big time frame. But it also meant more recruits for them... If she managed to get just two people, that would be fine...

* * *

**Year 0 Day 15**

Lucy was really not happy to see Zeref.

She couldn't deny that he was needed, but it was another thing actually seeing him again, after he so obviously rejected her. But she tolerated it as he made another two bonds between Lucy and Wendy and Carla.

Wendy and Carla... She was ecstatic that they finally turned to her way of thinking. It took seven years - seven FUCKING years - for them to finally realise, but they did. Wendy, now 19 years old, was as stunning as she was in Edolas, with long blue hair, a large chest that rivalled her own chest, and a body models would turn green with envy for.

When Horologium took Carla, Happy and Pantherlily, he took them to a secluded place. Horologium now confused Lucy, because he now could manipulate time, dimensions, etcetera, which made Lucy zone out. She recalled something about quantum... something, but nothing else. Whatever happened, worked, and Carla was completely against Fairy Tail now.

Wendy, on the other hand, she sent someplace special. She sent her to the Spirit World to her spirits. Apparently, it was becoming back to its original state, and once all twelve Golden Zodiac Keys turned black, it would completely turn back. Anyway, all of them had created a small space where they altered her memories. It took years to completely rewrite most of them, but now the true colours of Fairy Tail showed through, where they would abandon their nakama when it gets too hard.

Once the ritual was done, and while Wendy reacquainted with Mirajane and was introduced to Ultear and Meredy, Zeref turned to Lucy. She gave him a look which clearly stated 'this is your only chance'.

"Why did you run?" She asked quietly, sounding more hurt than annoyed. Zeref thought back to how he felt. He was confused, but also scared. He had never felt that way for someone, he was never meant to, but he did. He ran because he didn't know what to do. Hell, he still didn't know what to do. So he remained silent.

Apparently it was the wrong thing to do.

Lucy's eyes teared up. "Oh, so that's what it was." A single tear escaped her eyes before they turned hard and cold. She growled at Zeref before disappearing into a black mist.

Zeref blinked. He was completely and utterly confused. What the hell had just happened? He didn't say anything, but apparently there was nothing else that would've made it worse.

"What happened between you and Lucy, Zeref?" The menacing voice came from behind him, making him gulp. Mirajane. In all his 400+ years, he had never met anyone so unique as the people he knew now, Mirajane being the only person to have ever scared him, other than 'that person'. And, right now, her voice was enough to make his skin crawl and make him want to cry. Trying his hardest, he tried to fix the situation.

"I didn't mean it." He rushed out. "It was never meant to happen." He said, hoping that it worked. Apparently though, this was the only thing possible to make things worse, as her eyes narrowed and she glared at him, making him shrink back. Silently, he cursed himself. What had happened to his cool composure he had just a few days ago?

"Never meant to happen?" She hissed. "You wimp."

Although it was a weak insult, it hit him like a tonne of bricks. Yes, he was acting strange, like a weakling. From manipulating the Fairy Tail Mages against themselves to flinching from a look by a woman... He had really let himself change, and that needed fixed.

Wordlessly, he took a quick glance at Mirajane, who was startled by his cold eyes, and vanished away in a black mist.

His plan didn't just require an heir. Other things were needed too. His heir could wait.

* * *

**Year 0 Day 27**

The old man eyes the two new recruits curiously. They were strong - even he himself was slightly startled by their magic power - but they were... strange. In all his years, he had never seen people with their type of magic. It was dark, borderline evil, yet they never used it. Even for the entrance test into Sabertooth, the pair never used their magic, just their brute strength. And even after passing, they refused to join, and stated they were observing things in their guild. Normally, he himself would never allow that, but these two actually made him think twice. He hoped that they would change their minds and join, but he was doubtful, so he settled on having strong allies.

"Master J." Someone said, interrupting his train of thought. He turned to the feminine voice to see his daughter Minerva standing there with her hands on her hips. Even though they were family by blood, both had a mutual unspoken agreement that power went before family.

"What is it, Minerva?" He asked.

"I don't trust the newbies." She said. "They refused out guild mark, but you still let them stay around. Why?"

His eyes narrowed and his voice grew cold. "That is my decision, not yours to question."

She frowned for a moment before bowing. "Of course. I'm sorry Master."

She wasn't happy. The new comers were strong, but not part of their guild, meaning they were a threat. If their Master wouldn't act, she would.

* * *

**Year 0 Day 31**

"What about this mission, Rogue?" Sting asked his black-haired friend, pulling a request off the job board. It was the only somewhat challenging one, and the only one with a fight. It read:

**WANTED: Mages to recover stolen goods**

**LOCATION: Around Fiore**

**REWARD: 1,000,000 Jewels + Favour with the Lalique Family + Guild Renown**

_**DETAILS**__: A single female Dark Mage stole priceless jewels and gems from the Lalique Family household. Wanted dead or alive. May not be alone._

Rogue eyed it emotionlessly before nodding. Sting whooped, and was about to say something before he noticed the newcomers approaching them. "What do you want?" He hissed at them.

"We wish to accompany you." The woman smiled, her blue hair flowing freely down her back. "That's ok... Right?" On the last word, her eyes turned cold and she glared at them so viciously that they were worried that they had done something atrocious to her. Uncharitaristcallcy, both nodded wordlessly, eyes wide.

"Good." She smiled, all traces of ill intent gone. "Juvia and Gajeel will wait here for you two." With that, she walked off, leaving Gajeel to stare them down with his red eyes. Rogue had always wanted to meet him, but since they met a few weeks ago, Rogue's appreciation had reached a whole other level.

"Fucking pussies." He grinned, showing pointed teeth, before he walked off after her, making Sting question that last comment. Rogue, however, looked happy, like he had just heard brilliant words of wisdom. Sting shook his head, bemused at the whole thing. Now all he needed was Minerva to come over and say she was joining...

As usual, life listened to the sarcastic remark and granted it.

Minerva walked over, dragging another new member Yukino. The whole guild watched as she marched over to the two Dragon Slayers, dragging the poor Celestial Spirit Mage.

"We're coming too." She stated, leaving no room for argument, before trotting off, her grip still tight on Yukino.

Sting blinked. In the space of three seconds, Juvia, Gajeel, Yukino and Minerva joined the request, set a meeting place, and the ever-emotionless Rogue was smiling like he had just won the lottery. Sting felt like the only sane person, and he wanted to bang his head against a wall and scream.

No one noticed a small pink-haired girl who didn't belong slip out of the Master's office.

* * *

**Year 0 Day 39**

Lucy wiped her bloody hands on her dress, the once white colour smeared red. This was the fifth loose end she had cleaned up, all created by Mirajane. Lucy was absolutely stunned at the unique talent Mirajane now had at pissing anyone and everyone off. This was a family which she stole god knows what from them, and just left them to post a mission request about it. Lucy hoped she was quick enough to stop the trail from reaching-

A knocking sound interrupted her train of thought. She froze, hoping it was just her imagination.

"Hello? Anyone in?" Called a voice. Apparently, it wasn't.

"J-Just a second!" She called before she could stop herself. She cursed at her stupidity before springing into action. Clicking her fingers, she summoned Horologium (part of the new contracts) and used him to hide the bodies in his realm. Then she summoned Virgo, and after convincing her that she really didn't wanted to be punished by the spirit, Lucy's clothes were changed to more a expensive and cleaner gown in an instant (apparently certain parts never changed). Finally, she summoned some demons - curtsy of Zeref (even the name pissed her off) - all traces of blood were disposed of.

Turning around, she let her years of lessons from her old home flow through her, and she felt her body shift to that of a noblewoman's. Gliding across the floor, keeping her back straight, she walked to the large door to her false home (doing all this while mentally kicking herself at killing the family in the entrance hall).

But before she herself reached the door, another man was there, wearing a butler uniform. "Welcome to Blackharts Manor." He said, in perfect polite speech, bowing to the precise degree that would've taken years of training. "The Lord and Lady are inside waiting. Please, come in."

Lucy listened as the mansion around he came to life with noise. Maids and butlers roamed around the hall, entering different rooms, holding supplies and just generally doing work. She stood there patiently, her years of training not failing her, and watched as the main butler escorted six people towards her. Two boys, two girls and Gajeel and Juvia.

"Hi." The blond man said awkwardly. He was wearing an open white vest with black pants and boots. "We're from Sabertooth."

"Hello." Said a familiar voice from beside her. It took all her strength and willpower not to turn around and slap him in the face. Or kick him somewhere it would hurt. "I am Zeren Blackharts, and this is my wife, Lucillia Blackharts." On her false-name, Lucy did a small curtsy and smiled. "Please, follow us."

Zeref walked through the manor, with Lucy the customary one step behind, and lead them into a large room. On the way there, Lucy noticed how the mansion's interior had substantially changed. The colour scheme had changed from gold and red to black and silver, and the era changed from modern to something older, like from hundreds of years ago. The portraits had changed to images of her and Zeref, some also of Mirajane, Wendy, Gajeel, Juvia and Ultear. There were also some of the exceeds, but none of Meredy.

"Please sit down." He gestured to an antique black and silver settee, while he sat down on the love seat opposite it. Lucy took the remaining seat. "So, you are from Sabertooth, correct?"

* * *

As soon as they arrived, Minerva knew there was so something wrong. When they first arrived to the huge mansion, there was no one there. No gardeners, no security patrols, nothing expected from a home of its magnitude. Even the building itself was eerily quiet, but before she could do anything, the idiot blond knocked. There was no reply so he tried again.

"Hello? Anyone in?" He shouted. There was the sound of rustling inside then another voice replied.

"J-Just a second!" It was feminine and elegant, like a voice you'd expect from the lady of the house, not a servant. But, as the voice called, the mansion sprung to life. Guards, maids and butlers all appeared as if from nowhere, all donning black and silver attire, with the same silver 'BH' in a black heart with a silver outline embroidered over their own heart.

"Welcome to Blackharts Manor." Said a man, who she suspected to be the head butler. He bowed and stepped to the side, gesturing towards a woman, dressed in a priceless black and silver dress. Se had blonde hair with streaks of different colours in it, and she was so attractive that even Minerva herself was envious. "The Lord and Lady are inside waiting. Please, come in."

Next to her stood a man, in a black and silver suit, with black hair and black eyes that looked like a pit. He smiled, and if it were any other situation, Minerva would try her luck with the man.

"Hi." Sting said, his voice unsure. "We're from Sabertooth."

"Hello." Said the man. "I am Zeren Blackharts, and this is my wife, Lucillia Blackharts." The woman called Lucillia smiled politely and performed a perfect curtsy. "Please, follow us."

The six of them followed the married couple though the mansion. It was all black and silver (something told her that it was the family's colours), with priceless antiques lining the halls. There were portraits of Lucillia and Zeref, and some of two other women and even some cats. Yet, what really caught her eye was the portraits of Gajeel and Juvia. They were connected to the Blackharts Family, but what about the Lalique Family?

"Please sit down." Zeren interrupted her thoughts, gesturing to an antique black and silver settee, while he sat down on the love seat opposite it with his wife. "So, you are from Sabertooth, correct?"

"Yes we are." Sting said, taking control much to Minerva's displeasure. He introduced each person and pointed to them when he said their name. "My name us Sting. This is Rogue, Minerva, Yukino-"

"Gajeel and Juvia." Lucillia finished them. Looking at his confused face, she continued. "Juvia is my sister, and Gajeel is the head of security, but we treat him like family."

Minerva blinked. When Lucillia was talking, for a second she sensed something... It was powerful, incredibly so, but it disappeared in an instant. They were hiding something, and she knew it. Smiling evilly, she decided to take charge.

"So..." She said, gaining everyone's attention. "What happened to the Lalique family?"

Zeren just smiled, but it was slightly sinister, but that only made her more exited. "They are a close friend to our family, so we are being the middleman, so to speak." His voice had an edge to it, almost forcing her to drop the subject. But, she didn't.

"Why?" She asked.

"Because of a _favour_." Zeren replied, stressing the last word.

"Before you get into this pointless disagreement." Rouge said, remaining unfazed by the glare Minerva was directing to him. "Can I leave?"

Everyone blinked in surprise. "What do you mean?" Lucillia asked.

"I'm bored. Want sleep." He said, looking out the window to the setting sun. "Can we stay here?"

Zeren smiled. "But of course." He clapped his hands, and four maids entered the room. "Show our guests to their rooms." He said to them, and they nodded.

Minerva watched the married couple with suspicion. She was the last to leave, and she only caught three words.

"Minerva... Rogue... Kill..."

* * *

**Oh gosh, I'm finally done! Wow that took forEVER!**

**Ok, the reason for the way it is set out is because I thought of very good ideas that require the days (I think) so it's like that. Also it is for other reasons you will soon see.**

**Thanks for being patient! I would love it if you could review for me! And also the questions I wrote at the end of last chapter... Thanks for all the replies! Lots of people gave so many responses, but I'm not gonna say who is right or not (don't want to spoil the surprise).**

**Also, this was a sort of filler chapter, that's why it was so hard to write. Even I don't think it's that good, but it needs to be there. I was planning on doing the full first year here, but I thought differently.**

**~Nom Nom :3**


	8. Inside Blackharts Manor

**Disclaimer: I don't own this. Aww.  
**

**Ok, so I want to apologize for the really late update. I mean, it's been months (OMG IT HAS) so I will say sorry now. Sorry. There done.**

**Now, onto the story - I'm having trouble with this, mainly because of the damn thing called 'My brain' which is crowded with plot bunnies - but I think this will be ok... I think...**

**So: 169 Faves and 222 Follows! Yay! I'm happy!**

**Yeah...**

**Ugh... Well that's it.**

**Oh wait - a warning:  
There is an OC character here (for those who don't like them - shush he's important), and some male/male stuff (nothing big - I didn't even want to put a warning about it but I was convinced by all the haters out there to use this chance to annoy them -****ω-**).

**Also, I don't know if I've said this yet, but Minerva, Rogue, Sting and Yukino are all the age they were after the 7 year gap. So they are about the same age as Lucy.**

**~Nom Nom :3**

* * *

**Eighth:**

**Inside Blackharts Manor  
**

* * *

**Year 0 Day 39**

_"Minerva... Rogue... Kill..."_

Minerva blinked, her eyes darting to the now closed door of the room. She couldn't hear anything and one glance to her fellow dragon slayers proved that they heard nothing. Well, Sting heard nothing. As for Rogue... He could've overheard the plot of a mass murder and he would stay as expressionless as a piece of cardboard.

Minerva decided to stay quiet and follow her maid for now, and stay inconspicuous, until she had some time to really go out and discover what really was going on with this strange Blackharts family - if that was indeed their real name (_You're being paranoid._ An inner voice whispered to her, but she quenched it).

* * *

"You couldn't wait for them to leave, for even the _door_ to close, you impatient idiot." Lucy muttered. "You're unbelievable Zeref...n."

"Zerefn?" Zeref smirked. "Is that a new pet name?"

The smirk immediately vanished when he saw her glare. _She's still pissed..._ He thought.

"No, you're new pet name is Bastard." She said. She smiled at that. "So, Bastard, you want more people to be in servitude to me? What, you think I can't take care of myself?"

"What? No! Where did you get that idea?" Zeref spluttered.

"Hmm... Maybe from the fact that you keep dumping person upon person on my lap!" Zeref thought it was wise not to mention that all the people she had bonded with so far were indeed her decision. "I am not glass! I can take care of myself!"

"I know that _bitch face_-" She hissed at the name. "-but I am thinking of the future. What is an army without numbers?"

"What, am I your recruitment officer?" She hissed in a deadly whisper. "Next thing I'll be the office whore who you'll lend out to any other person to get their jollies off!"

With that, she vanished in a dark mist, making Zeref feel pleased that she thought that she was his, hurt that she thought he would just use her and overall generally confused that he was actually _feeling_.

* * *

**Year 0 Day 40  
**

It wasn't until after midnight until Minerva was able to sneak out of her private room (that was probably worth a fortune in itself). The maids stood there like security guards, standing perfectly straight and still that Minerva would've thought they were statues if she didn't know better. She was sure they didn't even blink or breath while they were watching them... And suddenly they just vanished like that.

Her danger sensors were going mad (which was slightly funny - she felt danger from the maids being there but felt more danger when they were gone). Now that she was out of her assigned room and in the mansion's corridors, her eyes were spotting things everywhere. movement in the dark, figures watching her, white teeth that looked like they were floating,with big red eyes above them... To be honest, she was sure that she _wasn't_ imaging them. They were too real. But no, the rational side of her mind was convincing her that she was just making things up.

It was around that time when she heard the ominous, eerie giggle - to low a pitch to be a child but too high to be an adult. Her movement froze, and her heart sped up while the second ticked away. When a minute passed and she heard nothing, she began to calm down.

"Just my imagination..." She muttered, sighing out of relief. That relief was short lived when she felt something wet slide across her cheek and a gentle whisper in her ear.

"You taste just like cinnamon."

She would never admit it, but that was the first time in her whole life that she had felt fear, pure unaltered fear. Another thing which she would never admit: she screamed. Like a little girl. Then she ran, as fast as her legs could carry her, away from her attacker (or molester from the position of his/her hands) and into the depths of the mansion. Again, like a little girl.

As fate would have it (with her extremely Schadenfreude***** sense of humor) Minerva ran away from her mysterious attacker and straight into the arms of the shadow dragon slayer, Rogue.

It only took Minerva three seconds to stabilize herself, jump off Rogue and start running, dragging Rogue with her by his hand. It took her five minutes of running before she collapsed breathless on the floor. As he had been since their clash, Rogue was standing silently besides her, his face an unidentifiable mask. For that she was grateful, because if it was Sting he would've never shut up, and then would've used this as permanent blackmail.

After she caught her breath, and calmed herself down, Minerva took a deep breath and looked over to Rogue, who was standing watching her, as emotionless as ever. They stared at each other for about a minute until she couldn't take it anymore.

"Well?" She asked.

Rogue merely blinked.

"Aren't you going to ask?" Minerva said, raising her left eyebrow. "I ran into you, then dragged you with me to..." She looked around, but couldn't notice any important features. "Wherever the hell we are now."

Rogue remained silent, and Minerva was about to snap and yell at him for just ignoring her until he spoke. "Are you alright?"

That made her blush. She dragged him with her inside the mansion, gripping so hard (out of fear) that she must've crushed some bones, yet he was asking if _she_ was alright? It was touching and... unnatural for someone part of Sabertooth, yet it made her feel warm.

"Y-Yeah I'm fine..." She stuttered, her cheeks getting a light dusting of redness. "Just someone - I strongly suspect Sting now - completely fr... _surprised_ me." She shivered at the memory.

Rogue was quiet for a moment before he spoke. "_Surprised_ how?" He said surprised in such a way it made Minerva think he actually knew what had happened (_come to think of it, I did run into him right after the 'attack'_ Minerva thought).

She blushed, _completely_ out of character for her, but Rogue had that affect on her. "Idiot, this is serious! Something could've happened!"

"Like?"

"Like... like..."

"_This?_" Purred a voice in Rogue's ear, and he felt a hand on his crotch. He stiffened, quickly jumped away and turned and faced the perpetrator in one fluid movement. It was a man, about his height, in a completely black cloak that blended into the darkness. They could only see the lower half of his face, which had a strange black tattoo on it, and his elongated canines shone in the darkness. His eyes were an impossible yellow, glowing under his hood.

"Cinnamon and..." He licked the hand that had groped Rogue's crotch (making said man blush) and smirked. "Dark chocolate. Unusual combination."

"Wh... Who are you?" Rogue stuttered, possibly for the first time in his life, feeling fear from the immense killer intent the man was radiating.

"Me? Someone. No one. Everyone." He paused then winked seductively to the pair of them. "Whoever you want me to be." He smirked. "But today, I'm just someone on a mission."

In one fluid movement, he grabbed the edge of Rogue's shirt and slammed their lips together. Rogue felt magic pour into his body, causing him to freeze and stop all protests as his mouth was invaded and ravaged by the unknown man. As the kiss got longer and longer, Rogue felt his reluctance fade until he was actually moaning into the stranger's mouth.

The man smirked and, rather reluctantly, pulled away, a trail of saliva connecting their mouths. The man smirked while Rogue blushed, with half-lidded dazed eyes.

"Mmm..." Hummed the man, thoroughly licking his lips as Rogue remained against the wall, slowly sliding down it in a daze. "Now I've wanted to do that for _weeks_..." He turned to Minerva, who had watched the whole interaction with wide eyes, yet couldn't do anything to stop it. In the blink of an eye, he was in front of her, one hand gripping her arms above her head while the other on her mouth, forcing it open. Her magic just wouldn't activate, and it was like his hands were drawing the magic she attempted to use forcefully out of her body.

"Ugh, and I don't understand why they want _you_." He said with obvious distaste. "Rogue-sama I can understand... And he's _mine_ now..." He shivered. "But you? Your magic is weak, very shallow and with no stamina... I could kill you with a finger." He lifted his right index finger, which was over her mouth, and wiggled it threateningly to the wide-eyed woman before sighing. "But, I have my orders..." With that he forcefully kissed her, shoving his tongue into her mouth and letting it touch hers for a brief second before releasing her.

Minerva felt the magic unload onto her painfully by that touch, the manipulation, the control and the power. So much power.

"Mission complete." Me muttered, before approaching Rogue again, crouching down next to his dazed body. Without hesitation, he stuck out his tongue and licked from Rogue's lower neck to his ear on the right side.

"Mine." He whispered possessively before disappearing into the darkness.

* * *

"What was _that_?" Lucy whispered, slightly shocked with the man's actions, before turning to Zeref accusingly. "Did you do this to Kita-kun?"

"I have no idea what you're talking about." Zeref said, feinting innocence.

"Hmm, course." Lucy said, unamused. "The biggest womanizer in Norther Fiore just so happened to go gay for one man, who he had no idea about twenty minutes ago."

"You never know." Zeref said, shrugging his shoulders, yet was patting his back on the inside.

"Hmm." She replied, clearly unconvinced. "I don't know what you 'said' to him, but if this makes him happy-" _And cures his commitment problems_. Lucy silently added. "-then I don't mind." Then she smirked. "And besides, some great Yaoi will be hot. Mirajane will like it too."

Zeref began to wonder in he had, in fact, made the right decision.

* * *

**Twenty Minutes Ago...**

"Lulu-chan!" Shouted a voice from the doorway, making both Zeref and Lucy jump in surprise. "I've missed you!"

The pair turned to look at the offender, Zeref mentally wondering how he managed to sneak up on him, to see a man about seventeen years old, with complete black clothes and a black cloak, with the hood pulled down. He had pitch black hair, possibly darker than the hood, with strange glowing yellow eyes (not that he could complain - his eyes were black, and he could make them turn red if he wanted) and a black tribal tattoo that swirled around his mouth, across his cheeks and chin, and down his neck. He was smiling a lop-sided grin, revealing elongated canines in his mouth.

"Kita-kun!" Lucy exclaimed to her surprise and Zeref's extreme displeasure - she knew him? "Wendy and Mirajane finally found you?"

"Yup." He nodded, grinning wildly. "But first things first - imagine my surprise when I discovered that Little-Miss-Goodie was wanted by the Magic Council. For murder." He pouted. "What happened to my dear sweet innocent Lulu-chan?"

Lucy merely raised an eyebrow. "I can't begin to explain how hypocritical you're being." She snorted. "What about your little 'gang'?"_  
_

_Lucy first met Kitaya Waru when she was fourteen. She was young enough to still be trapped by her father's web, yet was old enough to see that there was no love in her home. So she began to sneak out, off the grounds and into the nearby village of Freesia. It held nothing special apart from the old historic cathedral that was bigger than even Heartfilia Manor. It was her first time out of the mansion in her life, and thus didn't realize any signs of danger when she passed a group of older men hanging out in an ally. She heard catcalls and, being completely innocent, didn't notice a problem with them. That was until a hand roughly grabbed her wrist.  
_

_They attempted to have their way with her. Her clothes were in shreds and her breasts were showing before she had been saved, by another group of men. It was led by a boy her age, with the blackest hair she had ever seen, and a pair of eerie yellow eyes that looked as if they glowed. a small tattoo surrounded his mouth, making it look like his lips had a black outline._

_"Are you ok?" He asked, covering her exposed body with his coat. That was when she fell for her._

_After that, she visited time and time again, for the next year. She met his friends who were like him, and they all lived by a single rule: If they don't deserve it, don't do it. It was simple, and yet it was what saved her life that day._

_She followed Kita like a lost puppy. Whenever she was in Freesia, she would be almost attached to him by the hip and he - much to everyone else's surprise - would actually tolerate him. It wasn't well know to but a few, but it was because they both had the same experience: oppressive rich home lives, the only difference being that Kita got away._

_A year later, when Lucy was fifteen, she decided to run away. She was already popular in the group, with everyone knowing her as the only person able to calm the boss down, and thus was welcomed with open arms. So they set a date and location, and Lucy spent months planning, and when she finally was free and in the meetup location..._

_He didn't show._

_With guards hot on her heel, she couldn't spare more than a day before she had to leave. She didn't know that he was a day late and just a day longer they would've been together again..._

_So he filled his life with trying to find the right girl, the one that could replace his Lucy, while she filled her life with the hunt for the keys, something that had been her aim since he had said he thought her magic was beautiful._

He snorted. "We've all parted ways now. They're either dead, in jail or back on the straight and narrow."

Lucy pulled a face. "Yeah, they all were childish."

Kita shrugged. "I don't really care now. So, what you want with lil' old me? I don't think you just want some mindless rough sex?" He asked wiggling his eyebrows.

"As much fun as that would be-" She ignored Zeref's strangled cough. "-that's not it. We need your... expertise."

He smirked evilly. "I see my mastery of the lost magic has even reached your ears." He looked at Zeref, and looked like he finally realized he was there. "Who are you?"

"Zeref." Was the curt reply. Kita looked surprised, but didn't ask questions. "We want two targets manipulated to kill their companions." He pulled out two photographs, as if from thin air, and handed them to Kita. "Tonight would be preferable, but-"

"Nope." Kita interrupted. "I don't kiss men."

"Kita-kun, you can't seriously _still _be traumatized by what Takashima-san did!" Lucy groaned.

"Hey, it was my first kiss!" He complained. "He bit my tongue, Lulu-chan!" He turned back to Zeref. "No way. I don't kiss men."

Zeref was quiet for a moment. "How about we discuss this in private." He said at last. "Maybe I can sweeten the deal."

* * *

When they were alone, Zeref dived into Kita's mind and used his magic to the fullest. He had to do damage control to make him able to accept the job, but it was only after that when he decided to do something about his relationship with Lucy. He was still utterly infatuated with her, and he planned on using this as an excuse to get close to her again. Zeref wouldn't allow anyone near _his_ Lucy (while later he would be confused at his possessiveness, at the time he was angry and blind) and thus decided to wipe out any competition. He wasn't blind to the looks Rogue sent her, so with a few simple (simple if it kept Lucy all to himself) tweaks, he changed that complete infatuation on Lucy to Rogue, while removing all his concerns. And, because of his magic, he wouldn't have to manipulate Rogue too.

Zeref smiled. Yes, he indeed made the right decision.

* * *

It was late that morning when Sting and Yukino were eating breakfast when they noticed something... odd with their companions. As both Juvia and Gajeel had disappeared since the day before, it was only Rogue and Minerva with them, as per usual. Yet, what was different was that Rogue sat there, staring into space, a small permanent blush on his face like Gajeel had just expressed his undying love to him or something of equal measure. Minerva, on the other hand, looked apprehensive - nervous even. These two things together made the pair slightly wary.

"We starting the mission today?" Sting asked to break the silence, and effectively snapped the pair out of their musings. Sting put all the oddness down to the fact that their partners, Lector and Frosch, not being with them, and the fact that Minerva was with them. Yukino just thought Minerva had a nightmare - she heard her scream during the night, and figured that she was too proud to say she was scared.

"No..." Rogue said, his voice sounding strangely distant. His blush had gone, but his eyes were still focused on something in the distance. "No." He said again, more firmly and down to earth. "I want to show you something, Sting."

Sting nodded. "Ok, let's just wait until Yukino and Minerva are finished and-"

"No." Rogue interrupted. "I don't think that they'll... appreciate it."

Ah. That was a phrase from his past, from when Rogue wanted to get away and just talk to Sting, without any fronts. He nodded and stood up, pushing his plate away from him "Let's go then."

They walked out the room, and Rogue led the way through the mansion for about a minute before Sting stopped.

"Ah..." He grimaced, looking at his hand, which still gripped a knife. He rushed himself that he didn't put it down. It looked expensive, and he didn't want Sabertooth to be responsible for anything. "I'll be back in a minute."

He jogged back, ignoring Rogue's sigh of complaint and reached the dining room after about ten seconds. When he entered, however, he froze on the spot.

Minerva had used the large array of knives that were supplied to hold up Yukino against the wall. Knives were stabbed through her hands, arms, legs and feet, blood pouring freely from the wounds. In Minerva's hands was a jug of Cool Fire, something that the rich used to heat up maintain foods, and she was pouring it down Yukino's body, down the left side of her face, making her scream.

"What the-"

Sting barely had time to register the torture before pain exploded at his right shoulder. He screamed and fell forwards, looking behind him to see Rogue standing there, face unemotional as usual, with his arm creating a large shadow sword. But that wasn't the worst part. On the floor, at his feet, was Stings arm. The one that connected to the now bloody stump on his right shoulder.

Rogue took a step forwards, but Sting had already sprung to action, his dragon instincts and training taking over. He jumped to his feet and ran over to Yukino, pushing a distracted Minerva out the was so she fell onto the Cool Fire jug, and ripped her out the wall. Ignoring her cry of protest, he immediately wrapped his only arm around her and slung her over his left shoulder. Something fell, but he was too distracted to care, and he rushed to the window before jumping out, not even pausing with hesitation.

He fell from the second floor onto the grass, his left leg taking too much of the impact and thus causing it to promptly break. Yet, he ignored the pain and carried on, running as fast as he could and jumping over the high wall at the edge of the grounds with ease. He ran and ran, the world a blur around him, until it was too mush and he collapsed from his blood loss. Right before his world turned black, he heard the voice of an old woman.

"Another stupid human."

* * *

Rogue and Minerva stared out the broken window at the retreating figures of their targets.

"Do we follow?" Rogue asked, looking towards the third person in the room, Zeref.

Zeref shook his head. "No, the time for their death has passed." He sighed and picked up the golden key Pisces that was dropped by the Celestial Mage in all the hurry. "When the twelve golden keys have fallen into the darkness, with their world in sin, only then will the King walk the earth, unaided by the tools of man."

"What does that mean?" Lucy asked, standing at the doorway of the room.

Zeref smiled. "It means my finest work will come back to its master." He passed the golden key to Lucy. "One more key until The Destroyer walks the earth."

* * *

***Literally means 'Fail-Joy', the enjoyment from others misfortune (I used Google and Wikipedia - I forgot the word I was going to use hehe...).**

**Ok, here is the details to my OC:**

**Name: 北殺 悪 [Kitaya Waru] (From 北 [Kita: North], 殺 [Ya: Killing] and 悪 [Waru: Evil (Normally I would have this as Aku, but Waru looks better)]) - USED GOOGLE TRANSLATE  
**

**Age: Same as Lucy (I think it was 17?)  
**

**Magic:  
Mouth Manipulation Magic (able to manipulate people/transfer information/other stuff by touching their tongues and/or mixing their saliva)  
Magic Absorption (able to absorb small amounts of magic from people when touching [can only happen before activation of the magic])  
Shadow Magic (the ability to manipulate shadows - kinda self explanatory)**

**Power: Not that strong, just very smart and relies on tactics.**

**Other Information: Friend of Lucy from before Fairy Tail. Was a womanizer with a large crush on Lucy before Zeref 'introduced' him to Rogue. Lucy's first love.  
**

**Ok, next chapter done (FINALLY!). I won't lie, there is nothing wrong with me except procrastination. It's a deadly disease. But, here's another chapter, and Zeref's ultimate weapon is revealed!**

**Thank you for your patience everyone, I hope it was worth it!**

**REVIEW PLEASE!**

**~Nom Nom :3**


End file.
